Della's Disappearance
by PD4758PW
Summary: Will Perry be forced by the mob to defend a man who murdered a member of a rival gang? He will if Della is being held captive until a verdict comes back 'not guilty'. How can Perry balance a difficult court case and rescue the love of his life?
1. Chapter 1

The characters created by Erle Stanley Gardner are borrowed again for another adventure of Perry Mason, Della Street, and their associates. This story is based on the characters from the television series that began in the late 1950's. Any other characters named in this story are meant to be purely fictional.

**CHAPTER ONE**

Los Angeles District Attorney Hamilton Burger quickly stood up in the Courtroom. "Your Honor, I object again! Defense Counsel is badgering the witness with facts not in evidence..."

Renowned defense attorney Perry Mason quickly turned away from the witness stand to glare at Burger, then turned back towards the Bench interrupting Burger's objection. "Your Honor, I'm merely trying to get the witness to clarify his earlier testimony about his business relationship with Mr. Burger's other _so-called_ witnesses..."

This preliminary hearing for a man charged with first degree murder had become a battle of wits with petty objections by both the defense and prosecution. This was the third day of testimony.

The Judge cut Perry off right away. "That's it, Counselors! I've had enough of your bickering. Objection sustained! Court will take a recess until ten o'clock tomorrow morning. Witness will please step down. Mr. Mason? Mr. Burger? I want both of you in Chambers... _now_!"

With a big frown on his face, Burger gathered a few documents from the prosecution's table in front of him and headed for the Judge's Chambers. Perry slapped down a file folder onto the defense table in front of his secretary, Della Street, and walked away towards the Judge's Chambers with an angry look on his face.

Looking very concerned, Della was left at the defense table with their client, Lance Kopki. Before the jailer led Kopki away from the courtroom, Della managed to show a smile and gently touched his arm. "Don't let all of this courtroom drama get you down, Mr. Kopki. Mr. Mason knows what he's doing. I'm certain he'll be by to see you before court tomorrow." Kopki walked away with a worried look on his face. Della gathered up the files on the table and wondered if her sympathetic words gave the defendant any relief.

Perry's best friend and private investigator, Paul Drake, walked into the empty courtroom gallery and found Della sitting alone at the defense table. "Hiya Della. Where's Perry? I expected the hearing to continue for at least another two hours."

Della looked up from her notepad. "They're in Chambers right now. Things have not been going well at all today. In the ten years I've worked for him, I don't recall him ever being so frustrated on a case before. We've had so many other difficult cases before, but this one's putting him over the edge and I don't know why."

Paul sat down next to Della. "Wasn't this the case that you told him to pass up? I better get out of here before he comes out. He's not gonna like what I found out about Kopki's alibi."

Before Paul could explain any further to Della, they saw Perry walking fast out of the Judge's Chambers with Burger right on his heels. "Perry! Will you just wait up for a second?"

Perry was fuming mad and continued walking away from Burger. "I have nothing more to say, Mr. Burger! I'll see you tomorrow morning!" Perry only slowed down by the defense table before continuing towards the courtroom exit door. "Let's get out of here, Miss Street! And I wanna see you in my office right away Mister Drake!"

Paul stood up, looked to Della, and rolled his eyes. "_Mister_ Drake? _Miss_ Street? I think he's serious!"

Della quickly stood up to gather her notebook and briefcase to follow Perry who was already in the hallway. Burger made it to the defense table and with a pleading look on his face, he put his arm out to stop Della. "He needs to calm down, Della. He just ticked off the Judge so bad, he'll only hurt his client more if he continues to defend the case this way."

Della gave Burger a sympathetic smile. "I'll see what I can do, Hamilton, but there are no guarantees..." Paul reached out for Della's arm and guided her from the courtroom. They both quickly walked out to catch up to Perry.

The elevator door closed before Della and Paul could catch up to Perry inside. Paul sighed and pressed the elevator call button to wait for the elevator to return while Della just shook her head. "If he drives back to the office without me Paul, would you mind giving me a lift in your car?"

"If he drives away without you, why don't we stop at Clay's for a drink before we meet him in the office?"

Chuckling, Della stared straight ahead at the elevator door and smiled. "That's not a bad idea, Paul, but I think I better get back there right away. I still haven't been able to gather all of those phone call records that he wanted yesterday and I was hoping that I could finish that before he blows his top. What bad news do you have for him - or should I even ask?"

The elevator door opened and they stepped in. "At this point Della, the less you know, the better. I'll stop by my office before I get to his office. Maybe my new information won't be so bad if I can make a phone call before I see him."

When Paul and Della exited the Hall of Justice building, they saw Perry waiting at the curb behind the wheel of his new 1959 Ford Fairlane convertible. Perry was staring straight ahead impatiently drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. Della broke away from Paul on the sidewalk. "See you in a bit, Paul." In a quieter voice she added, "And good luck to both of us!"

Della got in Perry's car unassisted and barely got her door closed before Perry sped away from the curb. Della reached out to hold onto the dashboard and calmly tried to get him to slow down. "If we get hurt or killed in an automobile accident Perry, we won't be doing any of our clients any good."

Perry jammed on the brakes and pulled over to the curb at the next corner. "If you don't like the way I'm driving Miss Street, maybe you want to safely _walk_ back to the office."

Della's half-smile faded quickly as she stared back at him for a long moment before moving to reach for the car door handle. As she lifted her briefcase and turned towards the door, Perry reached over to her arm with his right hand. "Oh knock it off, Della! I don't need this opposition from you, too." After Della slowly removed her hand from the door handle, Perry pulled the car back into traffic and they drove the rest of the way to their office in silence.

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Thirty-eight year-old Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Dan McGill walked into his office in Salt Lake City, Utah around 2pm. The office secretary called out to him as he walked past her desk. "Dan, Harry wants you in his office right away. We tried to reach you earlier."

Dan thanked the secretary and put his briefcase on his desk while he sorted through a few phone messages he took out of his mailbox on the way in to his office. He was certain that his supervisor, Special Agent-in-charge Harry Schild, would want a status report on the major money laundering case he was currently working on. The case was not coming together as fast as he'd like, but he was making progress. Dan read his phone messages as he rubbed his forehead, then ran his fingers through his wavy, short brown hair. He tossed the messages on to his desk and made his way over to Harry's office.

Dan knocked on Harry's half-opened door and peeked into the office when he heard Harry's voice. Harry was seated at his desk talking on the phone, but looked up and motioned for Dan to enter. "Yeah, I know all about that. It's one of my top priorities right now... Look, let me get back to you tomorrow. Agent McGill is here now and I'll brief him on this new assignment... Right... Bye." Harry hung up the phone and looked up to Dan gesturing for him to sit down in the chair in front of the desk. "Have a seat, Dan."

Dan McGill sat his six-foot two inch muscular frame down in the chair and reached in his suit coat pocket for a cigarette. "I'm not sure I like the sound of that, Harry. 'New assignment'? I've only been _here_ four months. How's a guy supposed to find any stability in his life when he gets moved around all over the Country every few months?" After he lit his cigarette he snapped the lighter lid shut with a loud 'click'.

"Relax, Dan. You'll still be operating out of Salt Lake City. We'll just be sending you down to Las Vegas for a bit."

Dan took a long drag on the cigarette and slowly exhaled the smoke. "With all the crap going on down in Vegas, you'd think the Bureau would open a permanent field office there instead of sending us down there from here. Or better yet, why can't the LA office help out in Vegas?"

"I'm just as frustrated as you, Dan, but that's the way the Bureau has our Districts set up. Besides, the mob's influence in Vegas is so out-of-control, I think the Bureau wants to distance itself from all the local law enforcement corruption we're finding there right now."

"You're probably right. So what's this new assignment?"

"It's a bit of a stretch, but I think this is related to your money laundering case with the Chicago mob. How familiar are you with the 'Kansas City Crime Family'?"

Dan thought it over for a moment before answering. "That's a Civella family-run operation if I remember it right. Wasn't the old man indicted on some sort of tax evasion?"

"Not indicted yet, just summoned before a grand jury so far. Anyway, they've branched out even more in Vegas and Hoover wants more of a crackdown on organized crime there. We're spread thin with Commies on the east coast, civil rights in the south and midwest, and the mob in the west. Looks like job security to me."

"So what am I looking for in Vegas?"

"Jimmy Hoffa and his Teamsters are set up all over Vegas running casinos with the mob. Obviously we're not big enough to take down all of that yet, but a member of Civella's operation is causing us more grief with his Chicago connections." Harry pulled a thick file from his desk drawer and tossed it across the desk to Dan. "Vinny 'The Shark' Sharpelli needs to be taken out. Putting him out of business will help disrupt the leadership in Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, and part of L.A. You'll be working with an Agent out of Kansas City on this."

Dan started paging through the Sharpelli file. "I have a lot of reading to do on this. When am I leaving for Las Vegas?"

"As soon as you can get home and pack your bags."

Dan crushed out his cigarette. "I don't have a lot to pack. I guess I'll just see you later." Dan walked back to his office, grabbed his bag for the gym and made his way down to the Bureau's basement exercise area. He wanted a vigorous workout to think about what his assignment in Las Vegas might entail.

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Tony Sharpelli walked through the gaming floor of the Tropicana Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The cocky twenty-six year old son of Vinny Sharpelli was making his way towards the dressing room for the show girls hoping to catch Angela Totman before she gets into her costume for the early evening dance revue. The show's director, Saul Feldman, saw Tony near the dressing room door and didn't want Tony to disrupt any part of the show like he had done the night before.

"Whaddaya want here, Tony? Leave the girls alone or I'll have you tossed out of here! And I don't care _who_ your father is!"

"Mind your own business, Feldman. I just wanna talk to Angela before the show. There's no harm in that is there?"

"She wants nothin' to do with you. So why don't you go back to K.C. and stop causing trouble here?"

Tony walked away from the dressing room door when he spotted Angela walking down the hallway towards him holding onto her boyfriend's arm.

"Angela, we need to talk!"

The petit twenty-four year old Angela Totman stopped walking and held onto Marty Cameron's arm a little tighter. "I have nothing to say to you, Tony. Just leave me alone."

Tony sized up Marty and started to grab onto Angela's arm to pull her away from the big guy. Marty quickly grabbed onto the front of Tony's shirt and pinned him against the wall. "The lady said to leave her alone, so why don't you beat it before you get hurt, punk?"

When Marty relaxed his grip on Tony, Tony tried to take a swing at him. Marty caught Tony's fist, spun him around and twisted his arm behind his back. Tony was again pinned against the wall but tried to elbow Marty with his other arm. Marty had enough of Tony's attitude and knocked him out with a punch to his face. The Casino security personnel arrived quickly, picked Tony up off the floor, and began walking the dazed trouble-maker from the premises.

Trying to wipe spots of blood from his face with a handkerchief, Tony turned back towards Marty and Angela. "You'll pay for this! Just wait and see! You'll regret this! And I'm not afraid of you - or your _family_!"

Marty gave Angela a hug before she made her way through the dressing room door. "One more show, sweetheart. Tomorrow we'll be in L.A. and with my family's connections, you'll be a movie star real soon!"

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

When they got out of the elevator on the ninth floor of the Brent building, Perry's long strides walking towards their office door were too much for Della to keep up with in her high-heels. Perry walked in the office door without waiting for Della to catch up. Their office receptionist, Gertie, was at her desk hanging up the phone.

"Hi Mr. Mason. I didn't expect you back so soon..."

Perry slowed down by Gertie's desk and grabbed onto his stack of phone messages on the desk. "No calls, Gertie. I'll be in my office."

Della made it into the office in time to hear the door to Perry's office slam shut. Della saw the confused look on Gertie's face. "It wasn't such a good day in Court today, Gertie. I'll fill you in later. Has my packet from the phone company arrived by courier yet?"

"No, but there's a phone message for you from the phone company."

"Thanks, Gertie. I'll be in my office. Let's send all of Perry's calls to the answering service."

Forty-five minutes later Perry called for Della on her intercom. "Do you have those phone call records yet?"

Della hesitated for a moment before replying. "No, I'm sorry I don't..."

"I thought I told Paul to meet me here. Get a hold of him and tell him I need him here right away... And those phone records are your priority."

"Right, Chief."

Before Della could get on the phone and dial Paul's phone number, he was walking in the front door cheerfully greeting Gertie. "Hiya Gertie! I see the office walls are still standing. Are _they_ in?"

Gertie nodded and Paul walked into Della's office. Seeing that the door to Perry's office was closed, Paul thought he could speak to Della with his voice at a normal volume. "Any change in his mood yet?"

Della had a smirk on her face and raised an eyebrow before answering. "Not yet. Just say the word after you get in there and I'll bring in some ice for the bourbon if you need it."

"Thanks, Beautiful!" Paul winked at Della and walked into Perry's office.

Perry didn't even look up from the papers strewn on his desktop. "Where've you been? I've been waiting for your update all day!"

"I had to make a phone call before I could get you better news. Things are looking up now. Lieutenant Tragg is part of the prosecution's investigative team as of this morning. I think their original theory in the case is falling apart. And I think I know why."

Perry impatiently looked up at Paul. "Well? Are you gonna tell me why?"

Paul finished lighting a cigarette. "They might have arrested and charged the wrong man. I think your client will be a free man before court tomorrow morning."

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Paul's news to Perry didn't change his foul mood at all. Della kept busy in her office and between tasks she thought back on the past year. The office had been busier than usual and their vacation plans had to be placed on hold time after time. Perry and Della managed to get out of town for a few long, romantic weekends, but they really needed a long vacation and Perry's short-tempered ways were proof of that. Their getaway plans for the past weekend were put on hold when Perry kept Della and Paul busy in the office working on Kopki's defense.

Around 8pm Della got tired of feeling hungry and left the office to find something to eat. She brought back a steak sandwich from Clay's for Perry, but soon discovered that she was too tired to eat dinner herself. Della entered his office, walked across the room and set up the takeout box on a table near the balcony doors. "I thought you could use some dinner since you skipped lunch today. How about a steak sandwich from Clay's?" She placed some silverware and a napkin next to the sandwich and waited for a reply.

Perry never looked up from the reports and books scattered on his desk. Della walked over and removed the ashtray from his desktop then walked to the kitchen to empty it. She walked back to his desk. "I have some fresh coffee brewing. Why don't you try and eat before it gets cold?"

Perry reached for a cigarette. "I'm not hungry. Did you finish the notes from court today?"

Della sighed and walked back to her office. She retrieved the notes from court that she had typed and walked back into his office standing in front of his desk with one hand on her hip. "I spoke with the courier company and the phone records will be here first thing in the morning. If you don't need me for anything else, I think I'm gonna call it a day." She placed the notes on his desk. Perry did not reply.

Perry's private phone line rang and Della reached for the phone but Perry grabbed it first. "Mason."

While Perry talked on the phone, Della went to the kitchen and brought out the fresh coffee in a carafe. She poured him a cup of coffee and left the carafe on his desk. Perry was practically shouting on the phone. "That's not what I asked for! And I needed that other information yesterday... Send that other report over by courier tonight. I'll be waiting! And one more thing before I let you go..."

Della left Perry's office, gathered her purse at her desk, and went home to her apartment. After a light snack for dinner, Della changed into her nightgown and wrapped herself up in her silk robe. She poured a glass of red wine and curled up on her couch with a book. At 10:30pm she looked up from her book when she heard the soft knock on her apartment door. She started to put the book down and get up, but paused when she heard a key turning open the lock. Perry walked in and gently closed the door behind him. He wearily leaned back against the door when he saw Della sitting on her couch.

"I've acted like such a fool, Della... I'm so sorry! What can I say or do to make this up to you?"

Della put the book down on the table, got up, and walked over to him. Perry wrapped her up in his arms right away and buried his face in her soft curly brown hair. Della held on to the open collar of his shirt and laid her head against his chest.

They swayed in each others arms for several moments before Perry broke the silence with his low, deep voice speaking softly in her ear. "I ate the steak sandwich. Thanks for taking care of me, baby. Why do you put up with me?"

Della released her hold on him and reached for his hands to hold on to. "I've been asking myself that question a lot lately." She raised an eyebrow looking up into his big blue eyes and once again her heart melted. She smiled at him and led him over to the couch. "Why don't you sit down and I'll get you a glass of wine?"

Perry walked along with her feeling like a scolded puppy dog and sat down on the couch. He picked up Della's book to read the cover while Della walked to the kitchen to get him the wine. Perry called after her. "I'm hoping that things will go a little better tomorrow. Paul thinks that the LAPD is working on leads to arrest another suspect in our case. Kopki might be a free man tomorrow."

Della handed Perry the wine and cozied up next to him on the couch. "That's good news. I can't wait for this one to be over."

Perry put his arm around her and pulled her in close to kiss her cheek. "If we really do finish up this case tomorrow, let's plan to go away for the weekend. We can leave on Friday morning..."

"I won't be here on Friday. I'm giving that lecture series at the Legal Secretary's conference in San Diego on Thursday and Friday." Della searched Perry's face for a reaction.

"No chance that you can give that up, huh?" Perry was frowning.

Della just sighed and shook her head. "I can't believe you just asked that..." She took her hand off Perry's leg and reached for her wine to swallow a large gulp. "If you don't want me lecturing or advancing my knowledge in my profession, just say so..."

"I didn't mean it that way, Della. You caught me off guard again. I just forgot all about it."

"You were planning to go fishing with Paul on Saturday. Did you forget about that, too?" Della was a little annoyed.

Perry leaned forward looking down into his glass gently swirling around the tasty wine. "I haven't been myself lately..."

"You can say that again." Della put her hand on Perry's shoulder and gently moved her hand around massaging his lower neck muscles. "On Monday why don't I work on clearing out our schedule so we can take a long vacation soon? You really need to get away for a while."

"I have an idea. Why don't I tell Paul that we'll reschedule our fishing trip and I'll drive down to San Diego to meet you late on Friday afternoon? We can drive down to the Vista Del Mar and have Philomena set us up in our usual suite for the weekend. If you'll ride down to the conference with one of the other girls, I'll just pick you up at your conference hotel on the way to the Vista Del Mar."

While Perry pulled Della closer to him and nestled his cheek into her soft hair Della thought over the proposal. "Another _long_ weekend? When are you taking a _long_ vacation? Some real time away?"

"We'll plan for a long vacation on the weekend. I'll find a nice hideaway for us and we'll go away soon."

"Ha! How many times have I heard you say _that_ this year?"

Perry swallowed the rest of his wine, put his glass down on the table and laid Della down on the couch. "We're going away this time and I really mean it." He began kissing her neck while Della giggled.

"Perry... Umm... That tickles..." Della was still laughing.

Perry was whispering in her ear with his breath warm against her skin. "I can't help myself. You taste so good..."

"Don't start something you can't finish tonight, Mr. Mason!"

Perry moved his gentle kisses to Della's lips and brought her back up to a sitting position on the couch. "Spoil-sport! Who made up that stupid 'no overnight hanky-panky during a major case' rule anyway?"

Della just chuckled. "_You_ did. Now you better get out of here. It's late and we have work to do tomorrow!"

**TBC**

All reviews or other comments are appreciated. Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Early in the morning, FBI Agent Dan McGill made his way out of Salt Lake City driving south on US Highway 91. He wasn't looking forward to the long drive to Las Vegas, especially through the mountainous terrain where radio stations to tune into his car radio would be few and far between. He did not care at all for long, boring drives.

He spent most of the night before reading through the confidential file he was given concerning Vinny "The Shark" Sharpelli and his association with the Civella 'Kansas City Crime family'. Right away he saw the connection to his money laundering case that originated in Chicago but had since spread to Salt Lake City, Kansas City, and Las Vegas. Dan was hoping that he'd only be in Las Vegas long enough to update the other agents working the Civella family connection with his information. If they could put together an iron-clad case to present to the U.S. Attorney's Office, he could be back in Salt Lake City within a month.

After an hour on the road Dan stopped for a quick break at a diner to use a pay phone to call the woman he'd been dating for the past few months. Crystal Davis would probably be getting ready to leave her apartment for her nursing job at the hospital and he wanted to catch her to explain about his temporary assignment in Las Vegas. He'd tried to call her the night before without success, but then he recalled her telling him earlier in the day that she was going to be working a double shift. She answered the phone on the second ring with a sweet 'Hello'. Dan felt butterflies all over inside and he smiled.

"Good morning, sunshine. Are you ready to leave for another day of taking care of sick people?" In his mind, he pictured the brown-eyed gorgeous thirty-two year-old petit woman standing by her phone in her crisp white nurse's dress.

Dan heard her giggle a bit. "Good morning to you FBI man! Are you ready to rush out and chase down criminals?" Crystal was thrilled that he was calling.

"I've got news for you, Nurse Davis. I've been on the trail of criminals for over an hour already. What would you say if I told you that I'm on my way to Las Vegas for a temporary assignment?" He cringed a bit waiting for her reply.

After a long pause, her normally sweet voice sounded a little strained. "Oh my... How long is _temporary_?"

"I'll know more when I meet with other agents on the case, but I'm hoping I'll be back within a month..." He took in a deep breath and held it waiting for her reply.

"I know you can't tell me a lot about the case you're working on, but can I at least ask you if you think you'll be able to call me sometime while you're gone?"

Dan felt a small sense of relief. "Of course I'll try and call you. I can't be on this case twenty-four hours a day. I'm really sorry about this, Crystal. I'll make it up to you when I get back... I promise."

"I suppose I'll just have to wait for you, but in the meantime I'd like to know how you're going to make this up to me." Crystal was being a flirt.

Dan chuckled. "Well, first I'll choose a night when neither of us will be working the next day. I'll make reservations for dinner and pick you up at your apartment. I'll have a big bouquet of your favorite flowers for you..."

Crystal interrupted. "Uh, could you also bring chocolates? I love chocolates, too..."

"I'll be _sure_ to bring chocolates. Lots of chocolates. We'll go to dinner – and maybe a show. If you're not tired, we could go out for a nightcap – or two, and head back to your place..."

"That sounds wonderful FBI man. You sure know how to treat a girl. I can't wait to find out what plans you'll have for me when we get back to my place..."

"Hmm. I have a little time to think about that while I'm away from you."

Their flirty conversation was cut short when a long-distance telephone operator broke onto the line and asked for Dan to deposit another dime for the next three minutes to extend the phone call. Regretfully, they ended up saying their quick goodbyes. Dan had a handful of dimes to continue the call if necessary, but he knew that Crystal had to leave for work. Dan hung up the phone with a slight feeling of relief hoping that Crystal would understand that his job was not just any ordinary job. He longed for a little normalcy in his work – at least an assignment in a place where he could settle down for more than six months before being transferred across the country. He slowly exited the phone booth and walked back to his car to continue on his trip.

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Tony Sharpelli sat in his car in the parking lot of the Tropicana Hotel and Casino keeping an eye on Marty Cameron's Cadillac from a distance. As the sun was coming up he was able to clearly see Angela Totman and Marty Cameron loading luggage into the car. He'd sort of expected them to be leaving the Tropicana because he'd paid a desk clerk in the hotel to find out if and when Marty would be checking out. Now he'd have to follow them to find out where Angela would be performing next.

As Marty's car pulled out onto the Las Vegas Strip heading south, Tony followed at a safe distance wondering if it was possible that Angela was leaving town. When he saw the highway sign that showed it was forty-six miles to the California border on US Highway 91, Tony suspected that Angela was heading to Los Angeles. He wasn't too concerned about losing sight of Marty's car. If Angela makes it to Los Angeles, Tony would just get in touch with some of his father's contacts there to locate her.

Tony was not going to let Marty keep him away from Angela anymore. As far as Tony was concerned, Angela was _his_ girl since the moment he met her after a floor show at the Tropicana three months before. That girl was a beauty and could dance and sing with the best of them. Tony used his father's connections to try and keep her under contract at the Tropicana and their relationship was growing until Marty came into the picture. Marty lured her away with promises of something bigger than the Tropicana.

Just before her contract came up for renewal, Angela began to drift away from Tony and started telling him about after-show parties with celebrities associated with 'The Rat Pack'. Tony researched this group of show-biz celebrities from Hollywood with the likes of Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall and Frank Sinatra among others. After Bogart's death, Sinatra and other entertainers spent a lot of time in Las Vegas to bring in big money to the Vegas casinos with their shows. Tony was going to work on a way to keep Angela away from those in the 'Rat Pack' that he considered two-bit, hard-drinking celebrities. But for now, Tony settled in to the long drive ahead of him and used the time to plot how he was going to 'fix' Marty Cameron for good. Nodding and grinning to himself, with his right hand he gently patted the Colt .45 semi-auto handgun in the shoulder holster under the left side of his suit coat.

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Arriving at the office a little early, Della was standing at the sink in the kitchen rinsing out residual coffee grounds from the percolator and refilling it with water and coffee grounds for a fresh pot of coffee. With the noise from the water running into the sink and coffee pot, she didn't hear Perry walk into the office. A few moments later Perry was quietly walking into the kitchen behind her as she shut off the water and reached for a towel to dry her hands. She was startled when Perry gently grabbed her from behind and kissed her neck.

"Perry Mason! You scared the dickens out of me!" Della hung the towel back up on the towel rack and inhaled the manly scent of his cologne. Oh, how she loved the smell of his cologne!

"Sorry. I couldn't resist. You were just standing there looking so beautiful and I thought I'd give you a good morning greeting... Umm... Your fresh morning scent is driving me crazy..." Perry was grinning innocently with his hands on her shoulders while he continued kissing her neck. Oh, how he loved her sweet fragrance!

"Slow down Counselor, or you won't be drinking coffee before court."

Perry moved on to nibbling on her ear which made Della chuckle and squirm a little, but she tilted her head towards him and sighed. "Perry! Watch my earring. I can't afford to lose another one because you make them fall off kissing me like that."

"I'll buy you more earrings. You're too irresistible today." He moved his lips further down her neck again.

Della somehow reluctantly managed to slip away from Perry and moved over to plug the percolator into the wall outlet. She then turned to face him leaning back against the kitchen counter. "Paul called for you already this morning." She meticulously adjusted the handkerchief he had neatly tucked into the chest pocket of his suit coat.

Perry smiled at Della feeling good about how she always doted upon him. "I saw Paul in the hallway on the way in. He'll be here in a few minutes."

"Well since we have a _few minutes_ before Paul gets here, maybe I can use the time to greet you with a less-startling good morning." Della put her arms up around Perry's neck and pulled him towards her for a kiss on his lips. "Good morning, Counselor."

Perry wrapped her up in his arms and eagerly kissed her back. "Umm. I really missed you last night after I left your place. I'm looking forward to an exciting weekend with you..."

While the coffee percolator gurgled, they were still swaying in each others arms enjoying a few more soft kisses. They both sighed when they heard the rhythmic knock on the back door to Perry's office. After another quick kiss, Perry left Della's embrace to go unlock the door for Paul.

Paul walked in with a file in his hand. "Here's the packet of information that I gathered for you last night." He handed Perry the file at Perry's desk and sat down in his favorite leather chair nearby. Perry sat down on his desk chair and opened the file folder.

Della walked into the room with coffee. "Hello, Paul. Do you have time for a cup of coffee?"

Paul lit a cigarette and sat up straight in the chair. "If _you_ made the coffee, Beautiful, I have plenty of time for a cup."

Perry was reading over the file. "Can all of this information be verified, Paul? It looks to me like Kopki really _was_ at the scene, but after the victim was actually killed by Kopki's accomplice, Kopki handled the weapon."

While Della poured the coffee for Paul and Perry, Paul further explained the significance of the information in the file. "Right. And the sworn statement on page three will clear Kopki of the murder and implicate his accomplice. Burger's aware of this development and it's likely that he'll amend the charges against Kopki to bring to court this morning."

Della was standing beside Perry leaning in and reading the file over his shoulder. "So Kopki will have the murder charges dismissed, but what could the new charges be, Perry?"

Perry looked up and thought it over for a moment while he sipped his coffee. "Burger might go with aiding and abetting, but that might be a stretch. I think we should talk to Kopki before court. I wonder why Kopki never mentioned anything about his alleged accomplice?"

Della spoke up right away and pointed a finger on the page Perry was reading. "Look at the name of the accomplice. I recognized it from that deposition you took last week. It's Kopki's step-brother."

Perry looked confused. "He's probably trying to protect him. Hmmm. I should have noticed that before..."

Della rubbed his shoulder with her hand. "You're missing little details because you're overworked, Chief! I'd say its time for a long vacation when you finish this case..." Della looked over to Paul and winked. Paul grinned and nodded back to her.

Perry grabbed Della around her waist and pulled her closer to him. "What would I do without you, Della?"

Della bent down and kissed Perry on his cheek leaving a small lipstick smudge. "Oh, if I wasn't around, you'd do just fine on your own. And you'll always have Paul to help you out."

Perry shook his head and just grinned. "Uh, right. But Paul can't take care of me like you can. He can't type. He can't research my cases. His coffee tastes terrible and his phone manners are awful. I'm afraid that I'll just have to keep you, Della."

Della stood straight up and crossed her arms across her chest. "So you only want to keep me around for my office skills?"

Perry was still flipping through the pages of the file. "Can I speak to you about that some more when we're alone?"

Paul rolled his eyes. "Oh... you two! I think I'll head back to my office where I _am_ appreciated." Paul finished his coffee and stood up to leave.

Della followed Paul to the door smiling. "I certainly appreciate you in _this_ office, Paul. Thank you for digging up this new information. Perry's much easier to work with when he has a smile on his face. If I had to put up with him on another day like yesterday..."

Paul interrupted her right away. "He pays me well for digging up this information, Della, but I think I earn every penny if it helps _you_ put up with his moodiness." Paul and Della were grinning and waited to see if Perry would make any comments.

Perry finally chimed in without looking up from the file he was reading. "I thought you were leaving, Paul."

Before Della closed the door as Paul walked out, he got in one last dig. "There's always a job for you in _my_ office, Beautiful." Della just chuckled and began to lock the door.

Perry replied loudly from his desk. "I heard that, too, Paul! Della stays here with me. Thanks for this file and _goodbye_!"

Della picked up Paul's empty coffee cup to bring it back to the kitchen. "You better get your papers together. If you want to see Mr. Kopki before court, we'd better get going soon. Gertie should be in any minute now."

As Della came back into the room and waited for Perry to finish drinking his coffee, he set the cup down and grabbed her to pull her onto his lap. "We really do make a good team, Della." He kissed her cheek.

Della used a napkin to wipe the spot of her lipstick off of Perry's cheek. "I know, Counselor. You just better not forget _that_!"

They loaded their brief cases and headed out for court.

**TBC**

Thank you for your reviews and comments. Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

As they walked into the Hall of Justice building in downtown Los Angeles, Della noticed the not-so-subtle changes in Perry's demeanor right away. Earlier in the office he was frisky and jovial, but walking into this building, he was no nonsense – strictly business. His mannerisms commanded respect – from the way he walked the halls, to the way he tore apart witnesses under oath on the stand trying to hide facts of the case. He was a courtroom legend that took his job seriously when representing his clients. Della was proud to be at his side.

Perry and Della immediately went to the jail level in the building to meet with Lance Kopki. He was already in a holding room dressed in a business suit ready for court.

Perry's voice was stern. "Mr. Kopki... Don't you think it's about time that you told me the truth?"

Kopki sat down at the table in the holding room and fidgeted. ""I've _been_ truthful, Mr. Mason. Really, I have. I've told you before, I didn't kill him..."

Perry put his hands on the table and leaned over the table across from Kopki. "But you failed to mention that your step-brother was involved! And you failed to mention that you handled the murder weapon in an attempt to either get rid of it or lead the police away from your step-brother as a suspect!"

Kopki paused. "You're right, Mr. Mason. I'm sorry... But I just knew you'd help me get out of this. Your reputation as a successful defense attorney..."

Perry cut him off right away. "My reputation as a defense attorney, Mr. Kopki, has been to give my clients the best possible defense and to find out the truth! And that can only happen when I know as much of the true story _before_ we enter a courtroom! Now let's hear the _truth_, Mr. Kopki. I already know that murder charges against you will probably be dismissed today, so let's see what we can do to keep you out of prison on other related charges!" Perry moved a chair over to the table and held it while he got Della seated.

While Della took notes of the conversation in the holding room, Perry listened to Kopki and planned a new strategy for the hearing. As it got closer to ten o'clock, Della interrupted so they could get to court on time. Perry wrapped up his conversation with Kopki and they left the holding room.

After Perry and Della entered the courtroom, Hamilton Burger and Perry met at the defense table. Kopki had not been brought into the courtroom yet. While Della carefully laid out Perry's notes and case file, she listened closely as Burger and Perry calmly discussed the updates in the case.

Burger brought up the new information right away. "I'm guessing that by now, Perry, you know that we have another man in custody on this case. We'll be charging him with murder by noon today."

"Thank you for the update, Hamilton. Right now I'm only concerned about my client's situation. How will you be handling this new development this morning?"

"The amended charges will be issued against Mr. Kopki by summons. I'll ask for the murder charges to be dismissed against Kopki as soon as we're called to order."

"I appreciate that, Hamilton. But what are the new charges? If you're charging him by summons, I don't think you have enough for aiding and abetting."

"I'll be honest with you, Perry, we're still reading over the reports. Lieutenant Tragg will have more for me this afternoon. That's why we'll notify your client by summons. I still might have enough for aiding and abetting."

"I'll want to see the actual Complaint right away before we..."

Perry and Burger's conversation was cut off when the Court Clerk came out of the Judge's Chambers. "All parties in the matter of California versus Kopki? I have an announcement."

Perry and Burger turned towards the Clerk and acknowledged that they were present for the case. The Clerk continued. "I'm afraid there will be a delay until one o'clock this afternoon. The Judge is unavailable due to another emergency matter before the Court in Chambers. He apologizes for the delay."

Perry looked back to Burger. "I'll see you this afternoon, Hamilton. If you want to talk about the new Complaint before that, I'll be in my office." Perry turned to Della. "Let's go back to the jail to talk to Mr. Kopki before we get back to the office."

Della packed up the file folders into her briefcase to get ready to leave. She gathered her purse and Perry gently took a hold of her elbow to calmly walk out of the Courtroom with her. Della was smiling, feeling glad that Perry was back in a good mood for court-related business.

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Angela Totman noticed that the glitter and lights of Las Vegas were no comparison to the sights and sounds of Los Angeles. The vast, sprawling city of Los Angeles appeared to be more exciting and lively than the stuffy hotels and casinos of the Las Vegas strip. Marty Cameron made his way through the traffic on Sunset Boulevard and found a parking spot along the curb across the street from the main gate to Columbia Studios. Angela got out of the Cadillac and stood on the sidewalk looking in awe at the huge buildings where motion pictures were made.

"I can't believe we made it here, Marty. This is so exciting! When will I meet your connection?"

Marty joined Angela on the sidewalk putting his arm around and her moving her in close to his side. "We'll see the casting director tonight. He's an associate of my father."

"Do you really think I'll be in a movie right away? I mean, I'm willing to start at the bottom. This town looks like it's full of people waiting for the chance to be movie stars..."

"But many of them can't sing and dance like _you_ can, baby. You might not co-star with the likes of Gene Kelly or Fred Astaire right away, but this town still makes a musical once in a while and we'll at least get your foot in the door. Let's get over to my father's place so we can relax before our big day tomorrow."

When Angela and Marty got back in their car, they didn't notice Tony Sharpelli watching them from his car parked a few spaces behind them. As they drove off heading to the home of Marty's father in Bel Air, Tony put his car in gear to easily follow them at a distance. Tony nodded to himself knowingly, having discovered that Angela had probably come to Los Angeles to work in the movies. He wasn't going to let that happen.

Marty drove Angela through the winding, hilly roads of Bel Air and stopped outside of a security gate in front of a large home at the end of a secluded cul-de-sac. After a moment the gate was opened automatically, and Marty drove the rest of the way up to the modest Tuscan-styled home. While Marty parked his Cadillac near the front entrance to the home, Tony parked his car nearby on the street and looked over the layout of the area. He wrote some notes down on his roadmap and began planning his next move.

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After their afternoon in court ended early with Kopki's murder charges being dismissed, Perry and Della returned to the office to await word from Burger's office about the new charges Kopki might face in this case. While Perry got settled in his office at his desk, Della made her way into the kitchen to make a fresh pot of coffee. They had picked up roast beef sandwiches and coleslaw from a nearby deli to eat in the office.

Della set out silverware on the table in Perry's office. "The coffee will be ready in a few minutes. I can start typing up today's notes so you can close out this part of the file today."

"Why don't you wait a minute on that, Della? Instead, will you please find something for me? People versus Smith - California 1952. There's case law in there about the difference between aiding and abetting and accessory after the fact. I think that case was a similar situation to this one."

"Right away. While I dig that out, why don't _you_ set out the sandwiches? I'm famished!" Della walked towards their law library.

Perry smiled watching her walk away and called after her. "I think I can manage that! My girl won't work as efficient as she normally does if I don't make sure she's fed!"

Della chuckled in the next room. "And don't you _ever_ forget that!"

The rest of their afternoon was busy with Perry reading case law between assisting a few clients in person and over the phone. Della dug out more research for Perry and updated Kopki's file. It was well after seven o'clock when Perry finished dictating another brief and Della flipped her notepad closed with a yawn and a sigh.

Perry looked at his tired secretary and smiled. "How would my girl like it if we called it a day and I took her out for dinner?"

Della leaned back in her chair and stretched her arms over her head. "I think your girl could use a little bite to eat. I just can't believe you're quitting so early! There's still a little daylight left outside."

Perry's phone rang. They both looked at each other for a moment before Perry cautiously answered the call. "Mason..." Perry relaxed right away. "Yes, Paul... We were just discussing dinner... That sounds okay... Hold on, let me ask the boss..." Perry covered the phone mouthpiece with the palm of his hand and looked to Della. "Paul's hungry for dinner, too. Where can we take you tonight?"

Della was relieved that it was just Paul on the phone and not someone in desperate need of Perry's legal wisdom. "Why don't you men decide where to go while I pack up our work and freshen up a bit before we leave?"

Perry returned to Paul on the phone. "Italian. Come on down and we'll all leave together in fifteen minutes."

When Paul came in the back door, they locked up the office for the night and left for dinner. Della smiled to herself as they walked out the door. Perry was a different man when the pressures of a difficult case were resolved in his favor.

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As darkness fell over the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains in Bel Air, Tony Sharpelli watched the Cameron family from the tall hedges surrounding the Cameron family estate. They entertained Angela and Gabe Bergman, a motion picture casting director. He caught bits and pieces of their conversation as they sat out on the patio enjoying snacks and beverages. Bergman was associated with the Cohen family, a Los Angeles-based organized crime faction that had influences with the motion picture industry in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Marty's father, Linus Cameron, was associated in various syndicate-owned businesses with the Cohen family and Columbia Pictures.

As the chill of the early night air came down on the patio area, the party moved indoors. Tony had to quietly get through the hedges and move closer to the patio door to continue eavesdropping on them. He wanted to hear more of their plans for Angela who was to get a small part in a film that was in the casting phase of production. With his ear next to a nearby open window, the more he heard of the plan, the angrier he got. Getting Angela involved as an actress in the movies would completely ruin his plans for their future. He paced back and forth outside of the patio door and began to rethink his original plan. He wanted to hold Marty Cameron at gunpoint while he takes Angela out of Cameron's home to go back to Las Vegas. He could wait patiently nearby, then if and when he could find Marty and Angela alone, that plan just might work.

As he listened to Bergman explain a written contract to Angela, Tony became furious. He was overcome by their cheerful demeanor and celebratory champagne toast when Angela put her signature on the paper. Angela Totman would officially be in on a movie set by the morning. Tony snapped and decided that he needed to take action right away. In a fit of rage, he burst into the home through the patio door with his Colt .45 semi-auto gun in his hand and shouted for everyone to stay where they were. Startled, they all looked at Tony in disbelief and nobody moved. Tony was pleased that he got their attention so easily.

"Get over here, Angela! The rest of you just stay where you're at and I won't have to use this." He waved the gun around recklessly.

Angela was the first to say something. "Tony! You're crazy! What are you doing here?"

"Shut up, Angela! That contract is no good and you're coming back to Vegas with me! You're still under contract with my family at the Tropicana!"

Marty began to slowly move towards Tony with his hands raised and spoke to Tony in a calm voice. "That's not true, Tony. Her contract at the Tropicana was not renewed. But we can work this out, Tony. We can make Angela a big star... Right here in L.A."

Tony's hands started shaking and he shouted for Marty to stop. Angela began walking across the room towards Tony trying to get his attention away from Marty who took another few steps towards Tony. "Tony, listen to Marty. This will be a good thing for all of us..."

Tony had his finger on the trigger of the gun and continued to wave it around in front of him. "No! This will _not_ be good for us!"

Angela continued to plead with Tony. "Move here to L.A. with me, Tony... Trust me, this will all work out."

With Tony's full attention now drawn to Angela, Marty made his move and lunged at Tony to grab the handgun. Tony quickly stepped back pointing the gun at Marty and he pulled the trigger. The gunshot hit Marty in the chest and he fell back against a table. Angela screamed and ran towards Marty while the others ducked for cover. Linus pulled out a handgun and shot back at Tony. Tony ducked down unscathed and began firing wildly around the room. A bullet struck Bergman in the shoulder and he fell to the floor groaning in pain. Linus maneuvered his way around the furniture in the room to take more shots at Tony. A bullet from Tony's powerful gun ricocheted off of the marble-tiled floor and struck Linus in the foot. Linus scrambled around on the floor and emptied his gun firing in Tony's direction. The slide on Tony's gun locked back and Tony realized he was out of ammunition. In making his retreat from the home, Tony grabbed the movie contract off the table and quickly ran out the patio door.

Throughout the exchange of gunfire, Angela tended to Marty's chest wound loosening his tie and ripping open his shirt while Marty gasped for breath. She used his handkerchief to cover the gaping wound on his chest. "Marty! Hold on! Please hold on! I'll take care of you, Marty. This can't be happening!" She continued to cradle Marty in her arms as he spit up blood from his mouth and he lost consciousness. "Somebody get him an ambulance! He needs a doctor! Oh please somebody help me!" Angela was screaming.

Tony got back to his car and drove off in a panic at a speed too fast for the winding roads of Bel Air. His ears were ringing from the sounds of the loud gunfire. His head ached. He finally got a hold of his senses when he had to swerve sharply to avoid hitting another car head-on. He slowed down and along a dark stretch of road, he pulled over to the side of the road to park and make new plans. Beads of sweat were pouring off of his forehead. His hands still shaking, he grabbed his handkerchief to wipe his brow.

Linus made it over to a phone to call the police and an ambulance. He limped over to Gabe and gave him a cloth napkin from the dining room table to help with the bleeding from his shoulder wound. Linus then dragged himself over to Marty to see what could be done for his son. He sat down on the floor next to him. "Stay with him Angela. Keep talking to him. Damn, what's taking that ambulance so long?" He grabbed onto Marty's limp hand. "Stay with me son. You're gonna be all right!"

Angela cried and continued to rock Marty in her arms. He died before the ambulance arrived.

Within five minutes the police and ambulance attendants took over the shooting scene in the Cameron home. While Linus and Gabe received medical attention, the policemen gathered as much information as they could about what had happened. Eventually a policeman gently escorted Angela away from Marty's dead body and walked her out of the room while she continued to sob uncontrollably. Within an hour, Lieutenant Tragg of the LAPD Homicide Unit was on the scene to begin his investigation. He started by speaking with Angela.

"Miss Totman, I know you've already told the other policemen here what happened, but I need you to answer some other questions for me. I want to be sure we have the truth about what really happened here so we don't arrest the wrong man. Tell me all about this Tony Sharpelli character."

Within two hours, Tragg's all points bulletin on Tony Sharpelli and his car went out to all cars not only in the Los Angeles area, but all of Southern California. By 4am the next morning, Tony Sharpelli was arrested and booked into the Los Angeles County Jail for Probable Cause Murder. The tired and nervous Tony Sharpelli made his free long distance phone call to Las Vegas from the jail, person-to-person collect to his father, Vinny 'The Shark' Sharpelli.

**TBC**

Thank you for reading. All comments and reviews are welcome.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Dan McGill got up before the sun and began his daily workout routine right away. The workout included fifty sit-ups followed by fifty push-ups. After he ran in place for ten minutes, he took a shower and got dressed for the day. He already missed his barbells from the Bureau's gym back in Salt Lake City. Being strong and in good physical shape had always been part of his life. During World War II Dan put his college studies behind and joined the US Army. In 1943 he volunteered to join the 2nd Ranger Battalion which only took the fittest of men. After his discharge from the service he finished his college education and was recruited for the FBI. Now as he grew older, Dan still tried to stay in tip-top shape. He was hoping that he'd find access to a gym during his assignment in Las Vegas. He thought that maybe there would even be time for running on the Las Vegas Strip.

When Dan walked out of his government-furnished apartment in downtown Las Vegas, he was headed for the small diner down the block. He had gotten settled into the tiny apartment the day before, but hadn't found time to stock his refrigerator with any food. He couldn't wait to phone Crystal, so instead of grocery shopping he'd put it off for another day. He'd also made contact by phone the night before with an agent from the Bureau and they planned to meet in the diner by 7am. When he walked in the door of the diner, he spotted the other agent right away sitting in a booth along the back wall.

"Mack DeConcini I assume?" Dan extended his hand for a quick handshake.

"You are correct! Mack DeConcini at your service! Have a seat, Agent McGill."

"Thanks. And just call me Dan. It's good to meet you." Dan looked around the diner and saw a waitress making her way over to the booth with a pot of coffee.

The waitress placed a menu and empty coffee cup in front of Dan. "Coffee, hon? Special's steak and eggs today until eight..."

Dan smiled up at her. "Coffee sounds great, thanks. So does the special – eggs over easy and medium steak please." He looked back to Agent DeConcini. "Did you order yet?"

"Only the coffee so far." He looked up at the waitress. "I'll have the special, too please. Scrambled and rare on the steak."

The waitress snapped the gum in her mouth and picked up the menus. "You've got it hon. Be up shortly boys."

Dan was apologetic to DeConcini right away. "Sorry if I made you come out of your way to meet here. I'm not too familiar with the area yet. Do we even have an office to work out of here?" Dan brought out a pack of cigarettes and offered one to DeConcini.

DeConcini took the cigarette and brought out his lighter to light up both of them. "I've only been here a couple of days myself, and it's not out of my way at all. The U.S. Attorney's Office is loaning us space in the Federal Building downtown here. We'll be sharing a small space with four other men. They'll give us a drawer in their file cabinet. Oh, and we actually have a secretary!"

Dan sipped his coffee. "I don't know about you, but I can't wait to clear up what I can and get out of here. These cases with the mob are complicated and never-ending."

DeConcini nodded in agreement. "Yup. Just when you put one faction out of business, two more step up to take over and the one with the bigger gun wins. The syndicate in Kansas City is bad enough, but out here in Vegas, I don't know how anyone can keep up with up with them! When the Civella family and their goons moved out here to the casino business, I thought they'd move out of K.C. all together. Boy was I wrong! Vegas is just a branch office to them."

Dan tapped a cigarette ash into the ash tray. "And they picked Vinny Sharpelli as the branch manager I see..."

"Yup. He's been a thorn in our side, but lately he's been out here more than back in K.C. We also think he was responsible for whacking that Chicago Outfit Capo out in Hollywood a couple of years back. That Capo had ties to Marcello and his outfit in New Orleans. But of course nobody's talking about it. Ruthless! He took out the man's wife and three kids with him!"

Dan just shook his head. "Funny thing, isn't it? We rarely get them put away on the violent crimes but when they screw the IRS they end up in Alcatraz!"

The waitress arrived with their food. "Two specials. Can I get you steak sauce or ketchup? I'll be right back with more coffee for you hon."

The men made more small talk while they ate their breakfast. Within thirty minutes they were finished and headed to the Federal Building to get started on their investigation.

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Della stirred awake in her bed and blinked her eyes several times until she adjusted to the little bit of morning sunlight coming in to the room. Perry was still beside her sleeping soundly with his long arms wrapped around her. She lifted his left arm off of her, stretched, and rolled away from him towards the edge of the bed to get up. Perry stirred slightly, mumbled, and fell back to sleep. As she wrapped herself up in her robe, she looked back down at Perry and smiled. After a soft kiss on his cheek, she decided to let him sleep a little longer. She went to start the coffee brewing before she went to take a shower.

Perry was awake but still laying in the bed, hands tucked behind his head, when Della came back into the bedroom after her shower. He rolled onto his side and leaned over on one elbow patting the open spot on the bed next to him with his other hand. "Come over here, Della. I haven't had my good morning kiss yet."

Wrapped up in her bathrobe, Della was patting her hair dry with a towel but sat down next to him on the bed. "Did you sleep well?"

Perry gently pulled her down towards him and softly kissed her lips. "I always sleep well when you're with me. Is that coffee I that smell brewing? I don't know what I need more of to start my day - your sweet fragrance or the aroma of fresh coffee..."

"Stick with the coffee. I need you caffeinated right away to start our day so we can close out a few things in the office. Remember, I leave for San Diego tomorrow..." She kissed his forehead and stood up to move towards her closet. "Would you like your blue suit or dark gray one today? I picked up both of them from the cleaners Friday and they're all you have here right now."

Perry got out of the bed, stood up, and tightened the drawstring on his pajama bottoms. He was scratching his bare chest. "The blue one today, please. And some day I'd like my pajama top back." He walked over to her from behind and kissed her neck while she pulled their clothes out of the closet.

Della turned to face him. "I think your pajama top fits me better than it fits you. Besides, if _you_ wear it to bed, how can I run my fingers through the nice thick hair on your chest? You know how much I like that!" She ran her fingers over his chest and stood on her tip-toes to kiss him again.

With a smile on his face Perry just grunted, gently patted her on her rear, and began making his way to the bathroom to take a shower. "Next thing you know you'll want my dress shirts, too..."

Della tossed her towel at him as he walked away. "You just never know! Now hurry up in there. We only have time for scrambled eggs and toast this morning!"

An hour later they were in the office. Perry went to his desk and called up the answering service to check for messages right away while Della sorted the stack of mail that Gertie laid on her desk. They began their morning ritual of sipping coffee while finishing up leftover work from the day before so they could work on the new cases that would likely come up during the day.

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After Tony Sharpelli's early morning call to his father, Vinny Sharpelli and two of his men caught the first plane out of Las Vegas heading for Los Angeles. Upon arrival in Los Angeles, the dapper looking man in his mid-fifties with gray, thinning, short hair stood outside of the airport terminal with one of his men. Moments later, his other man drove up in a black four-door Cadillac and the men took off heading for downtown Los Angeles.

By nine o'clock Vinny and his men sat in a booth at a coffee shop in the vicinity of Parker Center, the LAPD's Police Headquarters Building. Within moments, a well-dressed Police detective walked in and made his way over to Vinny's booth. Vinny gestured for his men to leave the booth and the forty year-old arrogant detective sat down. Vinny's men took up protective positions in another booth near the coffee shop door.

"Whaddaya know, Jimmy?" Vinny sat back and sipped his coffee.

Detective Sergeant Jim Cager of the LAPD Homicide Division looked around the room then leaned forward across the table to talk quietly to Vinny. "I know your boy's in a lot of trouble... The problem is, I can't get close to the case. The Captain has me chasing down the perp in a husband and wife love-triangle murder that happened two days ago. Lieutenant Tragg has this one and he's being pretty tight-lipped about it around the office."

Vinny set his coffee cup down. "I think some of the evidence needs to disappear. And soon. You owe me, Jimmy..."

Sergeant Cager nervously looked around the room again. "I thought about that. But we have new protocol in place for chain-of-custody evidence handling. Our property room personnel had a big shakeup and now things are sealed up tight – especially on major cases."

"Then I suggest that you get a hold of your lab contacts to see that things are _tainted_. I pay you too much to even have to make these suggestions to you..."

Sergeant Cager clasped his hands together tight resting them on the table in front of him. "I know you do, Vinny, but the lab's a problem, too. Some of my contacts in the lab were part of the shakeup."

Vinny shook his head and he grinned. "How's the family, Jimmy? Your wife still shop at Milda's dress shop? Does she still keep her beauty shop appointment at Velma's every Thursday? It would be a shame if she had an accident or something when she takes the kids to that private school out in the Valley..."

Cager began to sweat and he wiped his brow with his handkerchief. "Look, Vinny. I'm tryin' to work something out for ya here. All I know is that there were eye witnesses to this. Two of 'em will probably disappear for a while until this settles down a bit. This is such a high-profile case that they already put one of the witnesses in protective custody. She's the one you wanna worry about."

"You're wrong about that, Jimmy. I won't be worrying about her. _You_ will!" He was glaring at Cager. "Who is she?"

"I don't know that yet."

Vinny emptied his coffee cup. He stood up and handed Cager a card. "Here's the number for where I'll be. I want that name within the hour." He motioned for his men to clear the way to leave the coffee shop but paused next to Cager before walking away. "I wonder what your wife is doing at home right now?"

Cager hung his head down running his fingers through his thick black hair, and stared at the phone number on the business card.

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Dan McGill and Mack DeConcini were busy in their office space putting together a flow chart of Vinny "The Shark" Sharpelli and his associates. Dan was closest to the chart that was placed on an easel, so he recorded names while Mack read them from their files.

Dan put the marking pen down and sat back to stretch his back a little. "So Vinny still has close ties to what's left of Jack Dragna's operation in L.A. He and his Chicago Outfit connections backed away from Cohen's movie industry connections in Hollywood after a few bloody battles..."

"Right. And now that Dragna's dead, what's left of the family under Frank DeSimone's leadership controls the bookmaking and gambling so they're in bed with Vinny and his Vegas associates. They're all still taking out one another, but the hit becomes a dead end when nobody talks."

The office secretary walked in. "You men might want this message that just came in over the wire." She handed the paper to Dan.

Dan thanked the secretary and read over the note. He looked over to Mack. "This is interesting. Sharpelli left for L.A. this morning. His son was arrested for a murder there early this morning. His son shot up the home of Linus Cameron killing Cameron's son, Marty."

Mack looked through the file. "Cameron's name goes on the Cohen side of the chart. Looks like the war is still on in L.A."

Dan finished adding Cameron's name to the chart. "Who do you work with out of L.A.? Maybe we should give him a call so he'll have a heads up on what's to come out there."

Mack opened up his notebook. "Russell Coffman is a good man in the L.A. office. Why don't we take a break on this and I'll call him after lunch? I have a feeling we'll be heading to L.A. In the next day or so..."

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Gertie walked into Della's office where Della was busy typing a brief. "I'm back Della. Thanks for covering everything while I was away at lunch."

Della stopped typing and smiled up at Gertie. "No problem, Gertie. How _was_ the new place? I forgot the name of it..."

"Froggy's... Everything inside was green. Including the chicken soup. I'm not sure I'll eat _there_ again."

Della chuckled. "Remind me to avoid that place, too. Perry and I will be meeting Mr. Burger right after lunch today, so we might not be back here before three o'clock. Will you be okay?"

"I should be okay – unless the green chicken soup starts to make me queasy later!"

They were both giggling when Perry came in to Della's office. "Did I miss a good joke, girls? How was the new lunch place, Gertie?"

"It was okay if you like the color green, Mr. Mason..." Gertie was still giggling and looked at her watch. "Oh, I better let you two get ready to go to lunch. I'll be at my desk if you need something."

Perry looked to Della. "Speaking of lunch, are you ready to go?"

"Yes! I'm starving. Just give me a minute to finish this page and I'll be ready..."

"While you do that, I'll make a quick phone call and we'll get out of here." Perry walked back in to his office.

Della turned her attention back to her typing but stopped when she heard a disturbance coming from Gertie's office area. When she looked towards Gertie's door, she saw Gertie with two men wearing dark business suits and fedora hats standing next to her pushing her towards Della's office. There was a third man casually walking behind them also wearing an expensive-looking business suit and fedora.

Della stood up right away. "May I help you with something?" Della saw the frightened look on Gertie's face.

Gertie spoke up. "They... they want to... to see Mr. Mason... They don't have an appointment."

With a forced smile on her face, Della took charge of the situation right away. "I'm Miss Street, Mr. Mason's private secretary. Maybe I can help you with something?"

By this time, the man at Gertie's side pushed her further into the room causing Gertie to stumble slightly. The other man grabbed a hold of Della's arm to pull her out from behind her desk and push her towards Perry's office.

The third man in the group finally spoke as they walked through Perry's office door. "Let's _all_ go in to see Mr. Mason. He'll see _me_ without an appointment."

Perry looked up from his desk as Gertie and Della were marched further into his office. He disconnected his phone call and stood up right away. He saw the fear and confusion on Della's face. "What's the meaning of this?"

Vinny Sharpelli nodded to his men and the men obediently led Della and Gertie over towards the conference table to sit them down. Della pulled her arm away resisting slightly and Vinny's man set her down hard in the chair. Della gasped as her elbow smacked into the wooden arm of the chair.

Perry quickly came around his desk to confront the goon that shoved Della into the chair. "Keep your hands off of my office staff!" He looked down to Della in the chair. "Are you all right?"

Della rubbed her elbow and looked back up to Perry. "I'm okay." Right away she diverted her eyes over to Gertie who was looking down nervously rubbing her hands together on her lap.

Perry took the non-verbal hint from Della and looked over to Gertie. "Are you okay?"

Before Gertie could respond, Vinny snapped his fingers and motioned for his men to check out the office. "She's okay. I apologize for our abrupt entrance into your office, Mr. Mason. My men meant no harm to these dames."

Perry was angry and took a step towards Vinny. "Who are you and what do you want here?"

When Vinny's men made a move towards Perry to protect their boss, Vinny waved them off. "I'm Vincenzo Sharpelli. My friends call me 'Vinny'. I need a good lawyer for my son."

"First of all, Mr. Sharpelli, these women are not _dames_! They're professional office workers who don't need to be man-handled by your minions! If you need an attorney, I suggest you take the elevator back down to the lobby and read the building directory on the wall. You'll find several other practicing attorneys who might be glad to assist you. I'm not taking any new clients at the moment."

Vinny removed his hat, sat down on the couch, and took a cigar out of his suit coat pocket. One of his men walked over to light it for him. "Please sit down, Mr. Mason. I think we can do business even if you're _not_ taking on new clients."

Perry remained standing and stood closer to the conference table near Della and Gertie. "What exactly do you want, Mr. Sharpelli?"

Vinny puffed on his cigar. "My boy was just arrested for murder. Antonio Sharpelli. He's my only son. You're the best defense attorney in town. I want you on the case. I'll pay double your normal fee." Vinny exhaled his cigar smoke and looked up towards the ceiling.

Perry used the opportunity to make eye contact with Della. She blinked and jerked her head slightly looking over towards her office door. Perry picked up on her hint. He thought she was telling him that she needed to get back into her office.

"It's not about the money, Mr. Sharpelli. It's about my availability. I have several criminal defense cases I'm working on at this time. Why don't you tell me a little more about your son's arrest and I'll direct you to another capable attorney?" Perry looked back to Della and she pointed to her mouth. Perry gave her a subtle nod.

Della spoke up before Vinny could say anything back to Perry. "Mr. Mason, I think there's a news story about Mr. Sharpelli's situation in the afternoon newspaper on my desk."

Vinny snapped his fingers and looked at his man by the door. "Go get the newspaper."

Della looked back to Perry again and jerked her head towards her office door once more. Perry gave her another nod back and they waited while the man came back in the room with the newspaper.

Vinny took the newspaper from his man and handed it to Perry. Perry read the small headline out loud. "One man dead in Bel Air shooting." Perry put the paper down on the conference table. "I'll need more information than what's in the newspaper, Mr. Sharpelli."

"If I had more information, I would give it to you. I want my boy out of jail, Mr. Mason!"

Perry leaned back on the table. "Did you talk to the police yet?"

"That's _your_ job, Mr. Mason."

"I'm not agreeing to represent your son yet, but let my secretary make a phone call and I'll try to get you information." He touched Della on the shoulder. "Miss Street, why don't you go make that call?"

Della stood up and started to walk towards her office. Vinny snapped his fingers again looking at his man by the door. "Stay with her. I don't want any unnecessary phone calls leaving this office right now."

Della sighed and walked to her office with Vinny's man. She sat down at her desk and dialed Paul's direct phone number. It rang twice before she heard Paul's voice.

"Good afternoon. This is Miss Street calling from Mr. Mason's law office. I need information on the arrest of Mr. Antonio Sharpelli, please."

Paul wondered why Della was being so formal. "Did you call a wrong number, Della?"

Della continued. "That's not correct. Mr. Sharpelli is a potential client for this law office and we're entitled to all the reports on his arrest." Della paused and brought out her notepad. "Yes, I'll hold..."

Paul sat up in his chair at his desk. "You're talking to me like you're under duress. You've got someone there watching over you, don't you? Give me that name again, Della." Paul was concerned.

"Yes, I'm still here. The name is Antonio Sharpelli. He's under arrest for the murder in Bel Air last evening... Yes, I'll hold..." Della looked up at the thug by her desk and smiled at him. She covered the mouthpiece on the phone to talk to him. "This might take a minute. The arrest records are new and it usually takes a while..."

Paul shouted for his secretary. "Margo? I need a hand in here right away."

Margo came into Paul's office. "What is it?"

"Get me everything you can on Antonio Sharpelli right away. He was arrested in Bel Air for murder. Give Smitty a call. I need to keep this line open with Della." Margo ran out and Paul got back to Della. "Is Perry with you? Keep talking if you can. I've got Margo all over this but I can come down there if you need me."

Della answered back. "Yes. Thank you, but that's not necessary... Say that again? It's Sharpelli. S-h-a-r-p-e-l-l-i... That's correct... Yes, I'll wait..." Della continued to stall.

"I'm assuming that you don't want the cops or you would have found a way to call them instead of me..." Paul nervously tapped a pencil on his desk waiting for Margo.

Della continued to talk in code. "I'll need to know the arresting officer's name and the name of the detective involved... I see... I'll wait thank you..."

Margo came back into Paul's office. "This came from Smitty on the LAPD." Paul winked at Margo and got back to Della.

"I hope you've got your pencil ready, Beautiful. This is a doozy."

Della told him to fire away. While Paul gave her the information, Della wrote it all down in shorthand on her steno pad. While Vinny's man looked away smoking a cigarette, Della flipped to another page in the notebook and wrote a note to Perry with all the pertinent background information he needed to know. She disconnected the call with Paul and walked back into Perry's office.

"Here is the basic information, Mr. Mason." Della handed Perry the notepad and sat down in a chair at the table.

Before Perry could look at the notes, Vinny snapped his fingers again and motioned for his man to give him the notepad. Vinny looked it over. "What is this scribbling? Read it to me!" He tossed the notepad back to Della.

Della caught the notepad, looked up to Perry and made eye contact again. Della looked down at the notepad and read over her shorthand notes. She tapped her finger on the notepad. Perry picked up on the hint and watched her flip to the next page.

Della read her notes out loud. "I was told by personnel in the Bureau of Records that Antonio Sharpelli shot and killed Marty Cameron in Cameron's home in Bel Air yesterday evening. Lieutenant Arthur Tragg of the LAPD Homicide Unit is the lead investigator. There are several witnesses to the murder. The murder weapon was recovered during the arrest of Sharpelli. Murder charges against Sharpelli are forthcoming through the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office. That's all the information I could get right now." Della put the notepad down on the table near Perry.

Vinny listened to Della's report and sat staring towards the ceiling still smoking his cigar. Perry took that opportunity to pick up the notepad and quickly read the note Della had written for him. He began pacing back and forth tapping the notebook in his hand hoping that Vinny would be more concerned about his pacing rather than Perry handling the notebook.

Vinny took another big puff from his cigar and sat forward on the couch. "So what are you going to do for my boy, Mr. Mason? When can you arrange for me to bail him out of jail?"

Perry stopped pacing. "I'm afraid that I won't be getting your son out of jail, Mr. Sharpelli. First of all, if your son is charged with first degree murder, there is no bail. And next, you have attorneys in the syndicate that can defend him better than I can. If I have to defend him, all of your _business dealings_ will be exposed and it's likely that the U.S. Attorney's Office will pay close attention to that. You're better off with an attorney that knows how much of your _business_ can be brought out in the open. Perhaps you should consult with Frank DeSimone. He's still a member of the bar, isn't he?" Perry paused briefly. "I won't take the case."

Vinny thought it over for a long moment and stood up. "You might regret this Mr. Mason." He put on his hat and motioned for his men to walk out ahead of him.

Della began to stand up and Perry motioned for her to stay seated while he went to his door to see if Vinny and his men were gone. He walked to the front office door, locked it, and returned to his office. "They're gone. I locked the front door. Are you girls okay?"

Gertie didn't say anything but nodded as she took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. Della put her hand on Gertie's shoulder to comfort her. "Just stay sitting for a minute, Gertie. Can I get you something? Water or a cup of coffee? More green soup from Froggy's?"

Gertie showed a nervous smile. "Where is that bottle of bourbon?" Gertie clasped her hands together on her lap to stop them from shaking and hung her head down.

Della got up and walked to the kitchen. "Stay right there! I think I'll have a snort with you, Gertie."

Perry walked with Della. "How did you come up with that information?"

Della poured two glasses of bourbon. "I called Paul, of course. And I better call him back right away or he'll be sending the SWAT unit here to surround the building."

Perry left the kitchen. "I'll give Paul a call. I can use him down here right away."

Della handed Gertie her drink. "Thanks, Della. I don't know how you could stay so calm. Those men looked so intimidating!"

"Since we've worked with Perry this long, you should know by now that there's not much that can make me panic anymore."

When Vinny and his men got down to the lobby of the Brent Building he went right to a phone booth to make a call while his men stood guard nearby. He made his demands known over the phone. "Two men will be enough. Clock him! I wanna know every move he makes, everywhere he goes. Call me with an update by midnight." Vinny hung up the phone and motioned for his men to clear the way to walk out ahead of him.

Vinny got in the back seat of the Cadillac parked at the curb near the door. His men got in the front seat to drive away. Before the car moved, the driver got out, plucked the parking ticket off of the windshield and tossed it on the street before driving away.

**TBC**

Thanks for reading! All comments are appreciated!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Paul Drake came in the back door to Perry's office about five minutes after Perry phoned him. "Have you become _Consigliere_ to the _Family_ now? Jeez, Perry, how did you manage to get messed up with 'The Shark'?"

"I'm not really sure, Paul. Just be assured that I'm not _counseling_ him on _anything_." Perry was smoking a cigarette reading the newspaper report of Marty Cameron's slaying.

Paul looked over to Della and Gertie who were still sitting at the conference table sipping bourbon. "Hi girls!" He did a double-take when he saw their beverages. "Well now! It's five o'clock somewhere..." He sat down in his favorite leather chair and lit a cigarette.

Della looked at Paul raising an eyebrow. "Be nice, Paul. Gertie's nerves are shot. It's not everyday that we get a visit from a mafioso and his enforcers... Especially one they call 'The Shark'! Can I get you something to drink?"

"No thanks, Della. I'd love to join your early happy hour, but I've got other things to do today."

Perry put the newspaper down. "Paul, have you been able to come up with any more background on Mr. Sharpelli and his ties to the L.A. Crime Family?"

"Oh, right. That's the reason I came down to see you!" Paul shifted in his chair and brought his notebook out of his coat pocket. "I only have a little bit so far. Sharpelli comes out of Kansas City. He got his nickname because apparently he takes a nasty bite out of those that cross him... He's been sent to Las Vegas by the Kansas City Crime Family - probably skimming from the casinos there. Anyway, his outfit has ties to L.A. - but only with DeSimone and their bookmaking rackets. And to answer the question you had on the phone – yes, like I mentioned before, DeSimone is still a member of the bar. And finally, I haven't found out why the young Sharpelli would want to shoot up Linus Cameron's home yet."

Perry put out his cigarette and thought over Paul's information. "I see..."

"If you need more, I can put a man on it. I'm heading down to La Jolla for a day or two on another case so I won't be available until maybe Friday..."

"No, that's fine, Paul. Thanks for your help."

Della chimed in. "Yes, Paul, thanks for your quick thinking to help me out on the phone. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't answered your phone..."

"Don't mention it, doll... I knew something was up when you were so polite to me..."

Della gave Paul the eye.

"I'm just teasing you Della. You're always polite – and _beautiful_." He winked at Della and she gave him a satisfied smile in return. "Well, I've got a few things to do, so if you don't need anything else, I think I'll get out of here." He put his notebook away and stood up to leave.

Gertie stood up at the table. "Della? Mr. Mason? If you don't mind I think I'll go home for the rest of the day. My Froggy's chicken soup is creeping up on me... If I leave now, I can catch an early bus..."

Della looked to Perry right away. "Perry, let's call a taxi for Gertie." She looked back to Gertie. "I don't want you to have to take the bus home if you're still upset and not feeling well."

Before Perry could respond, Paul spoke up right away. "I'll give you a ride, Gertie. Wherever you're going, I'm heading that way!"

Gertie swallowed the rest of her bourbon and walked away from the table. "Thanks, Paul. I'm going right home and locking my door!"

Della stood up and walked with Gertie towards the door where Paul was waiting. "If you want to take time off tomorrow, Gertie, just give me a call in the morning. I'll be here for part of the morning and Perry can just lock up when I leave."

"Thanks, Della, but I'll be back in the morning as usual. I've gotta learn to be more calm under pressure like you - and my lesson started today. Yeah, I'll be in right on time tomorrow! And as long as I know there's some of this liquid courage on the shelf, nobody will push me around again!"

Perry was consoling but cautioned Gertie right away. "I'd prefer that you not have to break out the bourbon to calm your nerves though, Gertie..." He stood up and looked over to Paul. "Paul, maybe there _is_ one more thing that I need from you before you leave town... If Gertie's coming in as usual tomorrow and Friday, why don't you assign one of your men to hang out in my office during our normal business hours? I'll feel more comfortable with a muscle man of our own in this office – at least until I can be sure that Mr. Sharpelli and _his_ muscle men won't be back!"

Paul nodded in agreement. "That's a good idea, Perry, and I think I have the _perfect man_ for the job! Well maybe not the _most_ perfect man - that would be _me_! But I'll get the second best." He turned to Gertie and held out his elbow for Gertie to hold on to. "Shall we go, Miss Lade?"

"Ready when you are!" As they walked out of Perry's office, Gertie continued. "Maybe you can get Bob for this assignment. I'd love to hang out with _him_ all day... He's _so_ good looking!"

Perry and Della just looked at each other, smiling and shaking their heads. They could still hear Paul talking as he and Gertie walked out the front door. "I said he was the second best man for the job, Gertie. You better behave yourself with him... You're making me feel jealous already..."

Gertie giggled. "Oh, Paul..."

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Agent Mack DeConcini had to leave a message for a return call from FBI Agent Russ Coffman at Coffman's office in Los Angeles. The call was returned after Mack and Dan McGill returned from lunch.

"Thanks for the call back, Russ! How are things out there in La-La land?" Mack laughed at Russ's response and continued with the call. "No, I've been sent out here to Las Vegas. Dan McGill came down here from Salt Lake City so we can put a case together on Vinny Sharpelli... Oh yeah, he's a real piece of work. He's been dabbling in the casino business at the Tropicana here, but Dan's got paper on him from simple money-laundering back in Chicago... Yeah, well the reason we're calling is that 'The Shark' made it out your way this morning... Yup, his boy is the one arrested in that one in Bel Air... Is that right? Hmmm... Well I'll be damned... Sure... We'll be here for a while yet... Appreciate it, Russ... Yup.. Bye."

Mack hung up the phone and gave Dan the details from the call. "Word out there is that Vinny's looking for an attorney for his kid. I don't think that's gonna help at all unless he brings in some big shot attorney from the east coast. Russ says that the murder case against the young Sharpelli is pretty strong..."

"But we both know how these things go – suddenly witnesses are bumped off or evidence disappears..." Dan leaned back and stretched his back. "What's he looking into for us? It sounds like he'll be calling back today?"

"Yup. He's gonna talk to the LAPD – they're putting the case together for the DA. He wants to see if us Feds can help out at all. They work directly with the LAPD's 'Gangster Squad' task force a lot and most of their cases went to the U.S. Attorney's Office."

"I wonder how far those cases went..."

"I hear that they've had a lot of success since they formed the task force... Oh well, I guess we'll just have to wait and see what Russ comes up with for us. Might save us a trip to La-La land!"

"I hope so. My mileage allowance with the Bureau is almost in need a of waiver already!"

The men got back to their flow chart and waited for Agent Coffman's call back.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Perry and Della grabbed a quick bite to eat at a lunch counter near Hamilton Burger's office. As they entered Burger's office building Della was trying to convince Perry to discuss Vinny Sharpelli's office visit with Burger.

"Maybe he can come up with some sort of charge for trying to intimidate an attorney into representing a client. Some sort of coercion thing..."

"It won't work, Della." Perry held the door to the outer lobby of Burger's office open for Della to walk in ahead of him. "He didn't make any credible threats..."

"I disagree, Counselor. What did he say when he left? Something like 'you'll regret this'. That's a threat."

Perry walked up to Burger's receptionist. "We're here for Mr. Burger."

"Have a seat, Mr. Mason... Miss Street. He'll be ready to see you in a few minutes."

Perry and Della sat down and Della continued pleading her case. "Or how about assault? His men pushed Gertie around. They weren't very gentle sitting us down..."

Perry reached over and touched Della's arm. "By the way, how _is_ your elbow? Still sore?"

"It's fine, but that's not the point... I think Hamilton needs to hear about this..."

"If Sharpelli returns, I'll talk to him about it. But for right now, let's drop it. We're here to clear up Mr. Kopki's case, remember?"

Della pouted. "Okay... But if Sharpelli returns, it might be too late to do anything about it..." She looked disappointed and got in one last plea. "The _Shark_... I don't like the sound of that!"

The receptionist announced that Burger was ready to see Perry and Della and they went into his office.

Burger was standing at his desk as they walked in. "Perry... Della... Come on in. Have a seat please... I have the new Complaint on Mr. Kopki right here." He handed Perry the paperwork.

Perry held a chair out for Della to be seated, took the paperwork, and sat down to read it over. "It looks pretty straight forward, Hamilton. Accessory after the fact... Why the summons? This doesn't indicate when we can expect a court date."

"I asked you to meet here because I wanted to talk to you about a deal. He testifies against his accomplice, and we won't need a court date for him."

"His _accomplice_ is his step-brother. I don't think he'll take a deal."

"Ask him. You can let me know before the trial starts for his step-brother."

Perry read the full Complaint. "Is this my copy? I'll talk it over with Mr. Kopki soon. I'm pretty busy with a few other cases going on right now..."

"Keep that copy. Just let me know." Burger paused. "So rumor has it that you're gonna defend Antonio Sharpelli. Is that what you'll be busy with?"

Perry quickly looked over to Della. She raised a brow but had a puzzled look on her face. Perry looked to Burger. "That's a bad rumor, Hamilton. I have no interest in defending Mr. Sharpelli."

"That's a good thing for you! We have a slam dunk case on this one."

"Where did this rumor come from?"

"The Feds. Their intel shared with LAPD's syndicate task force was saying that his old man is in town shopping for an attorney. The rumor _is_ that he was in _your _building. They also say that Sharpelli doesn't take _no_ for an answer."

Della shifted in her chair nervously. Perry looked over to her. Now she had a pleading look on her face. Perry thought it over for a moment then looked back to Burger.

"He _did_ make a visit to my office, but I sent him on his way. I think that I convinced him that if I had to defend his son, his business dealings would be brought out in the open and catch the attention of the U.S. Attorney's Office..."

Della looked a little more comfortable.

Burger looked very concerned. "What in the world... Perry, that man's dangerous! Do you really think he's just gonna look through the yellow pages to find another attorney?"

"I'm not worried about it, Hamilton. He'll probably ask Frank DeSimone for some advice." Perry stood up and assisted Della to her feet.

Burger stood up behind his desk. "I hope you're right, Perry."

"Me, too, Hamilton... Thanks for the meeting. I'll talk to you after I speak with Mr. Kopki."

While waiting for the elevator in the hallway outside of Burger's office Perry looked to Della. "Well, are you satisfied? Hamilton had the opportunity to offer advice or dig for more information, but he let it go."

"I'll have you know that I had to bite my tongue the whole time. But it's your call, Counselor. I just hope that if the need arises, you'll tell Hamilton the whole story."

They went back to the office to finish their work day.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Vinny Sharpelli was back in his hotel suite meeting with his L.A. associates. The booze glasses were never empty and their cigar smoke filled the room. Everyone in the room knew that Vinny was in charge and they all paid close attention to his orders. He told them what he wanted, then he listened to them make the plans.

He spoke directly to Junior Coccini, an associate from L.A. "I want to be assured that the message to my son was received. If this doesn't work tonight, we'll have to find another opportunity."

"Our inside man is ridin' the leg. Your boy will get the kite. We'll know by later tonight if they got him out."

Vinny looked puzzled. "Speak in plain language! The old way. What's this ridin' the leg and flying a kite crap? "

"Sorry Vinny. I was trying to talk our language in case the Feds are listening in..."

"They can listen in all they want! I've got nothing to hide. You young punks are always so suspicious. You think there's an 'Eliot Ness' hanging in the shadows just waitin' to send you to Alcatraz. Lemme give you some advice: don't talk business outside the family and you don't need to talk in code all the time. Use the code in public if you need to. So what's this kite crap?"

"I was merely saying that our inside man has connections to the jailers and your son will get your letter."

"Now we _all_ know. I don't want this screwed up. It shouldn't be that tough to break a man out of a _County_ jail! As soon as he's sprung, I want him over the border into Mexico. While he hides there, we'll make other plans for him to disappear for a while. Now what's happening with the girl? The dame they're protecting?"

Junior smiled. "We found the right man for that job. Solito took care of that one. By early next week she'll be rehearsing for some Broadway show in New York. She was more than willing to help herself out once we explained our offer."

Vinny put out his cigar and finished his drink. "All right. No screw ups... Now get out of here. I need a nap."

The room cleared out right away.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Dan was in the office reading a file when Russ Coffman's call came in. "Hi Russ. Dan McGill here. Mack had to run down to the Sheriff's Office for some records. What did you find out for us?"

Russ was calling from the gangster squad task force office in Parker Center. "First of all, thanks for the heads-up call about Sharpelli. A man on the task force is really familiar with him and his tactics. We got word that he was gonna arrange a jail break for his boy so we think we've taken care of that. Now we're dealing with finding out which one of the local cops out here was part of that. We also had to put a witness in protective custody. Just another easy work day out here in Los Angeles."

Dan wrote down notes about the call in his notebook. "Nice that you have the manpower and resources to get the job done. If you want to send us a few spare men out this way we could surely use the help!"

Russ laughed. "Are you kidding? Leave this paradise for a sub-station of the FBI in Vegas? Ha!"

"Well it doesn't hurt to try and ask for help. I'll let you get back to your paradise, Russ. I'll update Mack when he gets back. If you come up with anything else, just give us a call!" Dan hung up the phone and shook his head. Vinny Sharpelli was going to be a tough egg to crack.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

By 6pm Della locked up her filing cabinet and put the plastic cover on her typewriter. Perry strolled into her office.

"Quitting so soon, Miss Street?" With his hands in his pockets, he began rocking back and forth on his feet heel to toe.

Della was standing behind her desk with her hand on her hip. "I'm finished for the day. I'm ready to leave. I've got a hot date tonight."

Perry raised his chin and grinned at her. "Is that so...?"

"Umm hmm. My date promised to make me dinner tonight..." Della walked around her desk to stand toe to toe in front of Perry.

Perry stopped rocking back and forth. "Hmmm. A hot date you say..."

Della wrapped her arms around his neck and swayed side to side with him while Perry took his hands out of his pockets to clasp them together around her lower back to sway with her. "I'm wasting time standing here... Am I done for the day, Mr. Mason?"

Perry lowered his head to hers touching their foreheads. "Tell me more about this _hot_ date..."

"Well, for keeping my mouth shut at the District Attorney's Office this afternoon, I was promised a home-cooked meal by a certain good-looking attorney. In my mind, that's what I would consider a hot date."

"Well why are we wasting time standing here? Let's go see what your hot date is making you for dinner..."

Forty-five minutes later they were unpacking their groceries in Perry's kitchen. Perry took off his tie and suit coat while Della reached for an apron. Perry took the apron away from _her_ and tied it around _his_ waist.

"You, my dear, need to sit down and relax. _I'm_ in charge of dinner..."

"Well there's gotta be something I can do..."

They both stared at each other for a moment before they said the same thing at the same time.

"We need a cocktail..." Della immediately brought out the glasses to make their pre-dinner drinks.

They both sipped their Manhattans while Perry prepared the dinner. Their conversation went back to Vinny Sharpelli's visit to the office. Della was still concerned about the visit.

"How can you be sure that he won't come back again? I had a bad feeling about him. He was too... too... _unscrupulous_."

"I don't think he'll be back, Della."

"Well his threat before leaving means that he won't take no for an answer. And you don't get a nickname like 'The Shark' by being..."

"Ahem!" Perry cut her off by loudly clearing his throat. "I thought this was a _date_. Don't you think we can find something else to talk about besides the office?"

Della gave up. "Oh all right. So what do you want to talk about?"

Perry directed her to stir the linguini that was boiling in a pot of water. "Tell me more about your conference..." Perry made quick glances to Della as he sautéed shallots, garlic and shrimp bathed in olive oil in a frying pan with dry white wine.

Della paused wondering if he was really interested in her Legal Secretary's conference, but gave him an overview anyway. "Well, I hope to get there in time for the welcome luncheon tomorrow. By two o'clock I make my Thursday presentation. After that I can relax and enjoy the other presentations and then attend the cocktail reception at 6pm." She brought out the loaf of french bread and sliced off a few pieces.

Perry grinned and chuckled with a not-so-subtle 'Hmmph'. "Just what the hotel needs – a group of intoxicated secretaries staggering around..."

Della frowned, put the bread knife down, and turned away. "I knew you didn't really care about my conference..."

Perry quickly moved away from the stove and took a hold of Della's arm before she could walk out of the kitchen. "I'm sorry. I'm just teasing you, baby." He turned her towards him to give her a hug. "I'm just a little jealous that you'll be away for two days having a good time and I'll be back here researching case law and being bored without you around..."

Della relaxed in his arms. "Why am I such a sucker for your lame apologies?" She looked up into his sad blue eyes. "You'll pay for that little bit of sarcasm this weekend... We're going out for a nice dinner every night... You're taking me out dancing... And I'm making you stay with me while I shop for a few new dresses..."

Perry kissed her forehead. "Whatever you want, dear...Two out of those three requests aren't so bad." He then gave her a quick peck on her cheek. "Dinner is almost ready. If you'll set the table, I'll bring out the main course."

Della set the table and lit the candles. Perry brought the finished product out to the dining room table.

"Dinner is served madam! Shrimp scampi over linguini." Perry looked over the table. "The candles are a nice touch. So romantic... I think I like this _hot date_ concept." He dimmed the lights before he walked over and kissed her on the lips. He pulled out a chair for her to sit down.

Before he sat down, Perry looked around the table again. "What are we missing?"

They both figured it out at the same time. "The wine..."

Perry opened the bottle of Pinot Grigio and poured it into their glasses. After tapping their glasses together in a toast, their date night dinner officially began.

Within the hour, the dishes were cleaned up and they cuddled together on the couch sipping after-dinner cognac. Perry had an old Jo Stafford record playing on his hi-fi stereo.

Della had her head resting on Perry's chest. She yawned. "It's been a long day. I better think about getting home."

Perry tightened his grip on her shoulder and rested his cheek on the side of her head. "Stay with me tonight... Please?"

"I'd like to but I really don't think I should... I haven't packed for San Diego yet... I need to be in the office early to meet Maggie so we can get an early start on our drive..."

Perry didn't give up. "Stay here, Della. Please... We'll get up early and swing by your place before we go into the office. If I know you, you've probably laid out everything you're going to pack already so putting it together in the morning won't take long at all..."

Della took Perry's arm to look at his watch. "Let me see what time it is... It's almost eleven o'clock."

Perry moved his arm around her shoulder again and kissed her on the cheek. "I think it's bedtime then... We'll get a good nights' rest so we can get an early start..." Perry was grinning.

"Well then why are we sitting here?" She looked up to him with a passionate look in her eyes. "And I want your pajama top again..."

Perry helped her up off the couch and began walking her to the bedroom. "I have a feeling that you won't be needing my pajama top tonight..."

Della just giggled as the bedroom door closed behind them.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Vinny Sharpelli's evening didn't go very well at all. The plan to bust his son out of the county jail failed when for some odd reason, Tony Sharpelli was placed in a high-security cell before the planned escape could take place.

Vinny paced back and forth in the suite of his hotel waiting for a report from the men he had on another mission. The call came in just before midnight.

Vinny was calm waiting for his man to give the report on the phone. "So what have you got for me?"

The man on the line gave his report. "We followed him and the dame from a diner to the District Attorney's Office. They went right back to his office. Shortly after six o'clock they went to a grocery store and ended up in his apartment. They're still there and the lights are out..."

Vinny thought it over for a moment. "You say the dame never left his side? All day and night?"

"That's right, Vinny. She must be more than just his secretary if you know what I mean..."

"Okay. That's all I need for now." Vinny hung up the phone and turned to his men in the suite with him. "Give Roxy a call. I've got a job for her!"

**TBC**

Thank you for reading and reviewing!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Perry and Della woke up at Perry's apartment just a little later than Della had planned. They chuckled and blamed each other for not remembering to set the alarm clock. Their blame game continued as they finished getting dressed.

"The alarm clock was on _your_ side of the bed, Miss Street. It was _your_ job to see that it was set." Perry stood in front of the bathroom mirror straightening his tie.

"Uh, Mr. Mason, I don't recall staying on any _one_ particular side of the bed last night." Della turned her back towards Perry. "Zip me please..."

Perry finished zipping the back of Della's dress. "Since you caused me to have to roll from side to side on the bed last night, I got so dizzy I don't remember which side of the bed I ended up on..."

"Well I was your _guest_ last evening, Mr. Mason. It's the duty of the host to see to the comfort and well-being of the _guest_." Della bumped Perry away from in front of the mirror so she could see that her necklace was fastened properly. Her eyes met Perry's in the mirror and she smiled triumphantly. "I rest my case, Counselor." She walked into the bedroom.

Perry followed her into the bedroom. "Uh, the defense wishes to make a statement. The _host_ was distracted by the _guest_ who came into the bedroom leaving a trail of her clothing from the living room to the bed. I plead self defense!"

Della turned to face him and brushed minuscule pieces of lint from the front of his suit coat. "No jury in the world would _ever_ believe that... So it's your fault we're running a little late. Now let's get a move on!"

By the time Perry and Della got to her apartment to gather her bags to take along to San Diego, she was rushed. While she carefully folded her clothing into the suitcase, Perry was in the bedroom with her and offered to help her pack. She politely declined his offer and wasn't watching what he was doing at her dresser. He was holding up a sheer cream-colored negligee. "You might need this for our weekend together after the conference."

Della scowled at him. "Perry Mason! Put that back in the drawer! I'm not bringing that for just a _long _weekend. And if you keep delaying our long _vacation_, before you know it I'll be wearing full-length flannel nightgowns like an old lady!" She looked around the room and closed the largest suitcase, placing it next to a smaller one on the floor. "I think I'm finished. Let's get to the office. I don't want Maggie to beat us there."

Perry picked up the two largest suitcases and Della grabbed her cosmetics bag before they walked out of her bedroom. Perry commented on the luggage. "I think you forgot to pack the kitchen sink! How many bags do you need for an overnight at a conference and a long weekend with me?"

Della raised a brow and stared back at him with a hint of sass in her smile. "You men have it so easy. Nobody comments on the common suit-and-tie look. I need a choice of _what_ to wear for the conference... the luncheon... the cocktail reception..."

Perry shook his head. "Enough! I get it..." He turned towards the door carrying the bags and quietly mumbled to himself. "Women... I'll never understand 'em."

Della was right behind him with a key in her hand to lock the apartment door. "I heard that!"

Perry cleared his throat and turned to look at her smiling face. "Heard what? Did I say something? Oh, let's get out of here..."

They got into the office around 7:30 with thirty minutes to spare before Maggie was to meet Della there. Perry dropped off the luggage in Della's office while Della went to the kitchen to make coffee. Perry walked into his office and placed his briefcase on his desk. He was reading the headlines of the morning newspaper when he heard someone walking in his office door. He looked up right away expecting to see Maggie but when he heard another woman's voice, he was perplexed.

"Knock knock!"

Perry watched as a curvaceous woman with short, wavy blond hair wearing bright red lipstick walked up to his desk.

She repeated her greeting. "Knock knock! You're supposed to say 'Who's there?' Or don't you know how that joke goes?"

Perry just stood at the side of his desk and stared in disbelief as she walked up to him and put her arms around his neck. Perry began to remove her hands off him as Della walked in the office from the kitchen. Della stopped by the conference table, folded her arms across her chest, and watched.

Perry caught a glimpse of Della walking in and finally responded to the visitor. "May I help you with something?" He finally managed to completely remove her hands from around his neck.

The woman smiled and then brought her hands up to his chest playfully tugging at his tie. "If you're the great Perry Mason, I think you can help me... I need a lawyer."

Della had seen enough and walked over to the desk next to the woman. "Hello. I'm Miss Street, Mr. Mason's secretary. Mr. Mason's very busy today and if you can tell me what you need, I'll try to set you up with an appointment for next week."

The visitor took her hands off Perry and turned to Della to look her up and down. With her hands on her hips and a scornful look on her face she addressed Della right away. "Maybe you didn't hear me clearly. I said I needed a _lawyer_, not an impertinent _Girl Friday._" She turned back to Perry and smiled. "Are you open for business or not?"

Perry took charge of the situation when Della's body language indicated that she was going to drag the woman out of the office by her blond locks. "I just might have one free minute to see if I can help you. Won't you please sit down?"

Della hesitated and then curtly moved a chair over towards the desk for the intruder. Perry grimaced and shot Della a warning glance. Della then _politely_ offered the chair for their visitor to sit down. Perry then continued. "First of all, what's your name?"

The woman smoothed out her skirt after sitting back in the chair crossing her long legs. "I'm Miss Smith... Mary Smith..."

Perry sat down in his chair. "Okay, Miss Smith. Why do you need an attorney?"

Before she replied, she cautiously watched Della sit down and open her steno pad. She then turned back to Perry. "They're kicking me out of my apartment! That's why I want a lawyer! I should sue them... Shouldn't I?"

Perry clasped his hands together resting them on his desk and calmly replied. "Well, Miss Smith, if you'd care to give me a few more details about your situation, I'll quickly try to give you some advice..."

She pouted. "The landlord changed the locks on my door. He said that I ain't paid my rent for three months now. Mr. Mason, I ain't had enough money to pay the rent lately and I told him that. I also told him that I'd have the money real soon. So I come home last night and my key don't work in the lock!"

Della shifted in her chair which caught Perry's attention. Della touched her finger to her wristwatch. Perry took the hint – it was time to ask Miss Smith to leave.

"Miss Smith, if you'd care to leave your address and phone number with Miss Street, I'll try to work this into my schedule next week..."

"Next _week_? I'm locked out right _now_!"

"I realize that, but I have a very busy day ahead of me. As a matter of fact, I'm here before my normal business hours because my schedule is so tight today. I'll gladly recommend another attorney here in the building if it's better for you..."

Miss Smith opened her purse and brought out a stack of fifty-dollar bills. "I can pay you right now if you'll help me. How much do you cost?"

Perry and Della exchanged glances again before Perry spoke up. "My fee, Miss Smith, is not the issue here." Perry stood up and walked around the desk towards her. "Why don't I have Miss Street help you in _her_ office? She can give you the name and phone number of another attorney right here in the building who specializes in unlawful detainer situations." He held his hand out to help her to her feet.

She remained sitting. "I'm not in a... a... what you say _detainer_ situation! I've been kicked out! That landlord gave me that detainer thing months ago and I told him I ain't leaving! A piece of paper like that don't mean nothing to me!"

"An unlawful detainer is an eviction notice situation, Miss Smith. When a landlord locks you out of your apartment or home, that could be the final phase of an eviction process." He took a hold of her arm to help her to her feet.

Miss Smith rose up, put her purse down, and threw herself at Perry - wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. "I don't want another lawyer! You're the only one I can trust! Oh Mr. Mason! I need _you_!"

Once again, Perry had to pry her hands off of him and he gently tried to turn her away from him to walk her out of the office. Della stood up to follow them out of the office gathering Miss Smith's purse on the way. Miss Smith continued to plead her case.

"If you won't help me, I don't know what I'll do... I'll just have to jump off a bridge or something. Life's not worth living if you won't help me!"

Della rolled her eyes - tired of all the drama. Perry tried to console Miss Smith while they walked towards Della's office. "An eviction is not difficult to take care of. Especially if you have the money to work something out with your landlord. I suggest that you go see another attorney in the building and plead your case to him." He looked back to Della who was still scowling and following. "Miss Street? Can you look up the name of an attorney for Miss Smith that specializes in tenant laws?"

Della responded without even having to look one up. "Pete Stephens. Suite 407. He just opened at eight o'clock this morning." She handed Miss Smith her purse.

Miss Smith continued to protest as they walked her out the front door. "I only came here because everyone says that you're so good... And that you help everyone... And that you're so handsome..." She batted her long eyelashes at him.

Perry held the front door open for her to leave. "Thank you for stopping by Miss Smith. Good luck with your situation. Just take the elevator down to the fourth floor."

At the door, Miss Smith grabbed Perry again and this time she planted a big kiss on his cheek. "Goodbye, Mr. Mason. Thanks for your time..." She walked into the hallway with her hips swaying but stopped abruptly to turn around and blow him a kiss.

Della rolled her eyes again and pulled Perry back into the office. Perry closed the door and leaned back against it exhaling a heavy sigh.

Della took Perry's handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped the red lipstick smudge off of his cheek. "Well _she_ certainly was an odd one. Does she think that we really believe her name is _Mary Smith_? She's a gun moll if I ever saw one..."

"Oh come on, Della. One visit from a mobster and you think everyone's with the syndicate... What time was Maggie coming by to pick you up?"

"She should be here any minute."

"I'm going to get a cup of coffee. Let me know when she gets here and I'll bring your luggage down to her car."

Before Perry poured his coffee, Maggie showed up and he walked the ladies down to the main door to the building. As they walked through the lobby, Perry asked if they had a road map. Della gave him a look.

"Perry, I've driven to San Diego hundreds of times. We won't get lost."

"I just want you ladies to have an uneventful drive." While Maggie went to drive her car up closer to the door from her nearby parking spot, Perry stood at the curb with Della and her luggage.

Perry looked around and squinted his eyes into the morning sun. "Be sure to call me when you get there."

"As soon as I check in to the hotel I'll give you a call."

Maggie pulled the car next to them for Della to load up so they could leave.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

When Perry was walking the girls out of the building, he didn't notice _Miss Smith_ in a phone booth in the lobby. She was talking quietly on the phone.

"I didn't get very far with him... I tried my best come-on, but he put me off... Hold on a second. He's down here in the lobby right now... He's with _two_ women now – the tramp secretary and some other dame... They're carrying luggage!"

The male voice on the line listened to her then finally spoke. "Is Coccini still with you, Roxy?"

"Yes... He's in the lobby by the door reading the paper. He's watching them walk by right now."

"Can you signal him? I want him to follow them. Don't let that secretary out of your sight."

"Hold on..." Roxy put the phone down and waved at Coccini. He looked back at her right away. She pointed at Perry and mouthed the words 'Follow them'. Coccini nodded, put his paper under his arm and walked out of the building.

Roxy got back on the phone. "Okay. He walked out behind them. What else do you want?"

The man's instructions were clear. "I wanna know where they're going. Don't lose them! I've got plans for that secretary of his!"

Roxy hung up the phone and walked towards the door. She saw Coccini standing on the curb and watched as Perry loaded the luggage into the trunk of the car. She got Coccini's attention and he walked over to her by the door.

"Follow them. Give Vinny a call when you find out where they go. He's got plans for that secretary. I gotta get out of sight right now."

Coccini walked back to the curb and waved to his partner parked nearby. Solito put the car in gear to drive up to him.

When Perry finished loading the luggage, he walked over to close the passenger door of Maggie's car for Della. He managed to give Della a quick peck on the cheek by leaning in through the open window. "Have a safe trip. Don't forget to call..."

As Maggie and Della drove away, Della waved to Perry and blew a sassy kiss goodbye to him.

Perry smiled and turned to walk back into the building. Coccini and Solito followed Maggie's car from a safe distance. Roxy watched from the building lobby and when she saw Perry coming back inside, she ducked back into the phone booth. After she saw Perry get on the elevator, she gave Vinny a call.

"It's me - Roxy. Coccini's following the secretary and some other broad driving the car. Mason stayed behind. I told Coccini to stay with the secretary and give you a call when he sees where they're going."

"Good girl, Roxy. Go back to the lounge and I'll see you there tonight."

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Right after his morning workout routine, Dan McGill made a long distance call to Salt Lake City. He anxiously waited for Crystal to answer her phone.

"Good morning, Nurse Davis! How are things in the Crossroads of the West?"

"Things are just fine up here, Agent McGill. How are things in Sin City?" Crystal giggled.

Dan sighed. He loved hearing her sweet voice. "Things are very lonely here in 'Sin City'... I miss you..."

Crystal sat down on her couch near her phone and tried to mask her mutual yearning for him. "I miss you, too. How is the case coming along?"

"I wish I could say it was almost complete... But we're making progress..." Dan changed the subject. "So what are your plans for the day? I'm assuming that you have the day off and that you didn't sign up to work overtime..."

Crystal played with the phone cord twisting her fingers around the long cord. "You're correct, Agent McGill. I'm _not_ working today. When I finish cleaning my apartment, I'm going to do some errands. After that I think I'll just relax for a while until this evening."

"That sounds like a nice day... What are you doing this evening?"

"Oh, didn't I mention before that Doctor Strauss is taking me out for dinner?"

Her reply hit Dan like a ton of bricks. "Uh, no, you didn't mention that." He swallowed hard before he continued – trying to sound upbeat. "Well you really need a nice night out since you've been working so many extra hours. Where are you going for dinner?" He cringed waiting for her reply – hoping that she wasn't going to Jack's Steak House. He had taken her to Jack's on their first date.

"I'm not really sure where we're going. He told me that he wanted to surprise me. I think he still feels bad that I had to work overtime last week with the patient that had complications after surgery. I told him that I didn't mind staying late, but he wants to make it up to me I guess."

"Obviously he appreciates your dedication to the patients..." Dan decided to cut his phone call a little short so she'd stop talking about Doctor Strauss. "Listen, I uh... need to uh... get in to the office. How about if I try to call you later tonight?"

"I hope you _will_ call tonight, Dan. I enjoy your calls."

After reluctantly saying their goodbyes, Dan's heart sank as he hung up the phone and left his apartment to go to his office. He needed to work harder and come up with some evidence that will put Vinny Sharpelli and his men out of commission. He needed to do this fast and go back home to Salt Lake City so that Doctor Strauss won't have the opportunity to take his girl out to dinner anymore.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

When Maggie and Della stopped for a restroom break on their drive to San Diego, Coccini and Solito were still on their tail. Coccini found a phone booth and gave Vinny their update. "We're still on the road heading south. We're near Oceanside right now. What do we do now?"

Vinny's instructions were clear: keep following the secretary. Wherever she stops for the night call back with her location. He'll keep the famous Perry Mason busy in Los Angeles. Vinny said that he'd have a good plan when he knows where the secretary is going.

About an hour after their rest stop, Maggie and Della arrived at the conference hotel. The busy hotel bellhops met them right away to bring their luggage in to the front desk. The lobby was bustling with activity and Maggie stopped to talk with a friend who was passing through. Della went right to the front desk and didn't notice Coccini and Solito walk into the hotel and sit down in the lobby.

"Hello. I'm Miss Della Street – with the Legal Secretary's conference. I have a room reserved."

The desk clerk searched his files and found her reservation card. "Yes Miss Street. I have your reservation. And I see that you've been upgraded to a suite."

Della looked confused. "There must be some mistake. I reserved a single room with the conference room rate..."

"Originally your were assigned room 128. But the notes on this card show an upgrade courtesy of the Perry Mason Law Office... The reservation was amended and paid for in full by Mr. Perry Mason himself... We'll be updating our registry with the upgrade soon."

Della smiled. "I see... Well if it's already paid in full, I'll be very happy with the upgrade. Thank you."

"Just one moment please, Miss Street." The clerk looked through another file at the desk. "I apologize, Miss Street, but room 302 – your suite – is still being prepared by housekeeping. It will be ready in about twenty minutes. If you'd like, we can keep your bags here and have them brought to your room. I can give you the key right now, though." He handed Della her room key.

"Thank you. I'll be heading for the conference registration table and the welcome luncheon until the room is ready. I'll check back after lunch if that's okay with you." Della strolled off to sign in for the conference and receive her welcome packet. She still had a few minutes before the luncheon so she went to a phone booth to call Perry.

Gertie answered the office phone right away. "Perry Mason Law Office. May I help you?"

"Hi Gertie! How are things in the office?"

"Della! Nice to hear from you. Things are going just fine – especially with Bob here! Mr. Mason has been expecting your call. Hold on, I'll put you through!"

Perry crushed out his cigarette and answered the call. "Hi Della. How was the drive?"

"It was just fine, thank you. And thank you for the room upgrade! How in the world did you arrange that? Are you planning to take over my office duties any time soon?"

Perry smiled. "I can't replace you, Della. But once in a while I'd like to spoil you – even if it's only for an overnight hotel stay."

"You're an amazing man, Mr. Mason... How is your day so far?"

"Boring without you here. I'll be leaving soon to go and see Lance Kopki. After that I'll be at the Courthouse for the rest of the afternoon."

"Well I'll let you get back to work. I just wanted to let you know that I'm here and to thank you for the fancy room. It's not ready for occupancy yet so I'm calling from the lobby. I'll be in room 302 for the night."

"Room 302. I'm writing that down. I hope I hear from you later."

"Of course you'll hear from me later. I'm going to check in with you to make sure that you stay out of trouble while I'm out of the office!"

While Della was making her phone call, Coccini and Solito went up to the front desk. While Solito distracted the desk clerk, Coccini looked over the hotel register. He found a log on a clipboard with the room assignments for the Legal Secretary's conference and looked for Della Street's name.

**TBC**

Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Perry's meeting with Lance Kopki went just as he'd expected. Kopki did not want to make any deals in exchange for testimony against his step-brother. Perry also learned that Kopki's step-brother had retained a public defender for his case. Perry left Kopki's apartment and drove downtown to meet with Hamilton Burger. Burger's office was already crowded with Lieutenant Tragg and Sergeant Brice inside discussing Antonio Sharpelli's case.

"Come on in, Perry. We were just going over developments in the Sharpelli case." Burger directed Perry to sit down.

Perry sat down and lit a cigarette. Tragg spoke up right away. "I'm surprised that you didn't take on a case like this, Perry. There's been a few twists and turns already and he hasn't even been arraigned yet."

"That's one of the reasons I turned it down, Lieutenant. If there are to be any twists and turns in a case, I like to be in control of them... If you don't mind my asking, what's the latest? Did Mr. Sharpelli find an attorney for his son yet?"

Burger paged through a file on his desk. "I'm not aware of anyone taking the case yet. I suppose we'll find out about that on Monday at the arraignment. We've got other things to take care of before that." He looked over to Tragg and Brice.

Tragg took the hint and stood up to leave. "And we better get moving on that, Sergeant Brice. I'll be in touch when we find her, Hamilton." Tragg looked at Perry. "I see that your lovely secretary isn't with you today. I hope she's recovered from your, uh, _unsettling_ visitors yesterday."

"Della's just fine. She's in San Diego for a Secretary's conference. And Gertie has company in the office all day assigned by Paul Drake. I think I made it clear to Mr. Sharpelli that he needs to find an attorney somewhere else."

Tragg put on his hat and started for the door. "For your sake, I hope he takes your advice Perry... Good day, gentlemen."

Burger looked to Perry after Tragg and Brice left. "Well, do _you_ have any news that will make my day even worse?"

Perry put out his cigarette. "I'm not sure what other news you've had to disrupt your day, but I just came from my meeting with Lance Kopki. I'm afraid that he's not interested in your offer. Frankly, I don't see how your offer will help my client at all. Maybe we can talk about this again when the murder trial begins."

Burger rubbed his forehead. "Ron Daley will be prosecuting that one. I've got enough problems with Sharpelli's case right now."

Perry sensed Burger's frustration with the Sharpelli case and stood up to leave. "I should let you get back to work then. Watch out for his goons. They like to shove people around."

Burger looked up at Perry. "Speaking of his goons, did Sharpelli ever call them by their names when he took over your office? We think his men might be involved with the disappearance of one of our critical witnesses. We're trying to find out who his enforcers are."

Perry thought back to his meeting with Vinny Sharpelli. "Come to think of it, he never _did_ mention any names. He just snapped his fingers a lot and ordered them around... Who's missing, or don't you want to say?"

Burger paused, then let Perry in on his problem. "The girlfriend of the victim is missing. Angela Totman's her name. We think she skipped town... Tragg's trying to track her down for us. We have her signed statement, but can't find her to subpoena her."

Perry frowned. "You really _do_ have problems... Well good luck with that. I'll be in touch, Hamilton."

Perry left Burger's office and was walking to his car when he noticed a woman sitting on a bench outside crying. He looked closer and saw that it was Mary Smith. He looked at his watch and saw that it was only 4:15. He was planning to be back in his office by 5pm. He walked over to speak with her.

"Miss Smith? You look upset. Is there something that I can help you with?"

She dabbed at the tears in her eyes with a tissue as she stopped crying and looked up at him. "You wouldn't help me before, Mr. Mason. Why would you wanna help me now?"

"Well you look a little upset. I thought I'd stop and see if you found someone to help you with your eviction situation."

"Nobody wants to help me! I'll fight it by myself! And when I win at the hearing tomorrow morning, I'm gonna sue that damn landlord! He won't even let me get my belongings out of my apartment!"

Perry hesitated before he spoke. "He should allow you access to your apartment to gather valuables... What time is your hearing tomorrow morning?"

She was insolent. "What do you care? I begged you to help me and you refused. Some big shot attorney you are!"

Perry was sympathetic. "You didn't answer my question. What time is your hearing tomorrow morning? Maybe I'll have some free time to help you after all."

She stood up and thought it over for a moment. "You really mean it? You'll help me out?"

"I might be able to arrange something for you if you tell me what time..."

"It's at ten o'clock in Hearing Room C. Oh, Mr. Mason, if you really mean this, I... I... I just don't know what to say!"

Perry took out his notebook. "What's your phone number and address?"

"I don't have a phone number no more. Phone company cut it off. I _was_ at the Maryland Apartments off Lucas and Maryland. Apartment 4."

Perry nodded. "I know the area. I'll meet you outside of Hearing Room C at 9:45 tomorrow morning. May I give you a ride somewhere right now?"

She shook her head. "Uh, no thanks. I uh... might be... uh... meeting a friend here soon. Real soon. Yeah, I have someone coming to meet me..."

"Very well then. Good day, Miss Smith..." He turned to walk away.

She watched Perry walk to his car. After he drove away, she went back into the building and found a phone booth. She dialed a number and waited for an answer. "Hiya Vinny? It's me, Roxy. It worked this time. Perry Mason will be meeting me for the hearing tomorrow morning... What else do you need?"

Vinny Sharpelli smiled on the other end of the phone line. "That's all I need for now, Roxy. You done good, girl. I'll see you later, babe!"

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Junior Coccini and Freddy Solito hung out in the hotel lobby keeping an eye on the activities associated with the Legal Secretary's conference. They had their orders from Vinny Sharpelli. Coccini and Solito planned to take care of Vinny's orders as soon as they could find Della Street alone.

Della's afternoon presentation went very well. She networked with other conference attendees after her presentation, and by 5:15 she walked over to the elevator to go to her room to freshen up before the cocktail reception. She left the conference area with three other women under the watchful eyes of Coccini and Solito.

When Solito stood up to follow Della, Coccini waved him off. "Not now. Too many witnesses with her. I have a copy of their conference agenda. She'll be back in the bar soon for the cocktail reception. When she leaves that, we'll move..."

Solito nodded and sat back down.

Della got up to her suite and phoned Perry all excited to tell him about her day. "Good evening, Counselor. How are things up there?"

Perry was happy that she called. "Things are quiet without you around here. I can actually think straight without your interruptions to tell me to do this... and that... and go here... and there... and sign this... and that..."

"You're not funny, Mr. Mason..."

"I wasn't trying to be funny, Miss Street... Ha... Okay, I _was_ trying to be funny... So, tell me about your presentation. Did it go as well as I thought it would?"

"I think it went well. I wasn't nervous at all. I had a few nice conversations after it during the break. Oh! And you'll never believe who gave me positive feedback on my presentation... Judge Allen!"

Della waited for Perry's reply. "Judge Allen? Do I know him?"

"Not _him_, silly! _Her_! She's retired from the Sixth District Federal Appeals Court... She was really close to being a Supreme Court nominee... As a matter of fact she asked me to have dinner with her tonight after the cocktail reception."

Perry sat back in his chair and lit a cigarette. "That sounds like an interesting evening. You better take it easy at the cocktail reception. Too many martini's and Judge Allen might put funny ideas in your head. The next thing you know, you'll be in Law School... or something worse... and you'll leave me..."

"Ha! You know that I'll never leave you... So what's _your_ plan for the night?"

"I'll spend a boring night at home reading case law and missing you..."

"Don't forget to pack a bag tonight so you can make it down here tomorrow. Our conference adjourns by 4pm. What time will you be leaving L.A.?"

"I'll leave by noon - I hope... I ran into Miss Smith outside of Burger's building this afternoon..."

Della's smile faded. "How much lipstick did she leave on your cheek this time?"

Perry grunted. "Humph. It wasn't like that. She was crying sitting on a bench when I walked by to get to my car. She didn't find anyone to help her with her U.D. The Hearing is tomorrow morning at ten o'clock. I told her that I'd stop by... After that, I'll be on the road heading for San Diego."

Della paused before she replied. "I hope you know what you're doing... She really bothers me. Did you get her real name yet?"

"No, but I have her address. She bothers me a little, too. I just need to find out for myself exactly what she's about."

"Of course you do. Especially when she acts like some _damsel-in-distress_... Well I'm going back down to the cocktail reception and dinner. You better go home before some other damsel-in-distress walks in."

Perry chuckled. "No chance of that tonight! I locked the front door when Gertie and Bob left. I'll be a good boy and go home. I'm tired. My girl kept me up too late last night..."

"Oh, you... Go home! If I get lonely later, I'll call you tonight."

"You _better_ call me tonight. I'll want to hear all about your dinner meeting with the Judge..."

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Dan McGill and Mack DeConcini returned to their office from a meeting with the U.S. Attorney in downtown Las Vegas. They presented what they had on their case against Vinny Sharpelli and the attorney made out a "wish list" for them to make an airtight case.

Dan sat down at their desk and put his feet up. He lit a smoke. "I think his 'wish list' is easily done. We can probably have that stuff done by the middle of next week at the latest."

Mack unloaded papers from his briefcase. "I think you're right. First thing tomorrow I'll head over to that business office at the casino if you'll take the bank to check their files. I'll have our secretary start typing our search warrant request so we can get it signed right away."

The desk phone rang so Dan picked it up. "Agent McGill..."

It was long distance from Los Angeles. "Hi Dan! Russ Coffman here. How are you guys doing back there?"

"We're doing okay, Russ. Just got back from a meeting with the U.S. Attorney. Things are coming together... What can we do for you?"

"I'm afraid I might rain on your parade a little, Dan. We've got problems with your man Vinny here..."

"What kind of problem?"

"We think he got to a key witness in his son's murder case out here. She's disappeared. I think we're gonna need some of your case file out here to put some pressure on him. If we can get him locked up temporarily on some of your information, we might be able to trade his release for our key witness."

"Boy, I don't know, Russ. What we have so far won't be enough to keep him locked up for very long. Some hot-shot mob attorney will spring him within an hour."

"Our local District Attorney thinks he can concoct a chargeable offense that will keep him at least for the weekend. It's worth a try. The DA's name is Hamilton Burger. Good guy. He asked me to call you. Maybe you can give him some of the highlights of your case over the phone."

After he hung up from Russ's call, Dan talked it over with Mack. Dan called Burger right away. When he finished the call with Burger, they gathered their files together from the office. They went home to pack their bags to leave for Los Angeles first thing in the morning.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Coccini and Solito kept a low profile hanging out in the hotel bar. They kept a close eye on the bar and restaurant watching for Della to leave alone. At one point they met in the lobby to talk it over.

Coccini was getting frustrated. "She's never alone! She's a big part of this conference. Life of the party almost! Why don't we just wait until she's in her room for the night? There won't be any witnesses around her then..."

Solito nodded in agreement. He stayed in the lobby and Coccini returned to the bar. Just after 8:30 Della and a group left the bar and headed for the elevator. Solito met Coccini in the bar. "Well, I think the party's over for the night. Let's give her about fifteen minutes and we'll pay her a visit."

They made their way to the elevator and moments later they knocked on the door to Room 128. After a minute an elderly man answered their knock. "Yes? What is it?"

Coccini and Solito looked at each other in disbelief. "We're looking for a friend. She was at the conference downstairs."

The man at the door was confused. He opened the door further. "There must be some mistake. It's just me and the missus here. We're not involved with any conference at this hotel..."

Coccini excused themselves quickly and they walked back to the elevator. "Damn! I got that room number right off their conference room assignment sheet. She must have changed rooms on us!"

Solito made a suggestion. "Let's just go down to the front desk and ask what room number she's in."

"Not a good idea. I don't want them to see our faces. And at this time of night, I don't think they'll give out room numbers. Damn! I think we'll have to take care of this tomorrow morning! Let's get out of here for now. I'll give Vinny a call and tell him we'll take care of business tomorrow."

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

As Della unlocked the door to her suite, she heard the phone ringing. She ran to the phone next to her bed to answer it.

"Hello?"

It was Perry. "Don't you think it's a little bit late to be hanging out in a bar when you have another conference presentation to make tomorrow morning?"

Della smiled. "It's not even nine o'clock yet! I suppose you find it okay when I'm still out after midnight if _you're_ with me dining, drinking and dancing?"

"The only time I'm out dining, drinking and dancing after midnight, Miss Street, is when you've insisted that we go out and grab something to eat because you're _starving_..."

"Did you call just to make fun of me tonight, or is there something else that you wanted?"

"I wanted to make sure that you're in your room where you should be at this time of the night. I know how these conferences go – alcohol is served, single women stay out later than they should, and the men watching from the bar make their moves..."

"Do you know this from experience, Mr. Mason?"

Perry paused for a moment. "I plead the fifth... How was dinner with the Judge?"

"It was fine. She's a very interesting lady. Did you know that when she was growing up, she wanted to be a classical pianist? An injury to her hands put that out of reach. Eventually she took law classes even though most law schools at the time didn't admit women. She found work as a legal investigator to pay her tuition when she found a college that allowed women to study law. The rest is history..."

"Hmm. Legal investigator, huh? Sort of like the work you do with me... I hope she didn't put any ideas in your head..."

"Oh stop it... You're stuck with me... I can't be replaced..."

"And don't I know it! So, are you calling it a night now? No plans to go back downstairs to the bar and share a nightcap with any of the vultures waiting to make their moves on inebriated women?"

"I'm in for the night, Counselor. I didn't see anyone as good looking as you at the bar..."

"Aha! So you _were_ looking, weren't you?"

"Oh for crying out loud, Perry! I'm hanging up now... Goodnight!"

"Wait, Della... Please don't hang up yet..."

Della smirked and shook her head. "What is it now, Mr. Mason?"

"Goodnight... I just wanted to say goodnight."

"Goodnight. I'll _see_ you tomorrow..."

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Friday morning Coccini and Solito were back wandering around the hotel. They watched from the restaurant and the lobby as Della moved from place to place with other conference attendees. For most of the morning she was in the hotel ballroom where the conference was being held. She was never alone and Coccini was beginning lose his patience. While Della was in the restaurant for the luncheon, Coccini and Solito met outside of the hotel to make a new plan.

Coccini lit a cigarette and went over his idea with Solito. "This thing ends around four o'clock. The first opportunity that we see her alone or with only one other person, we'll politely take her aside and tell her we need her assistance with something. We'll just make something up. As soon as she comes with us, we make our move and get her out of here." Solito nodded in agreement.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Perry began his day in the office and by 9:30 he was on his way to Hearing Room C in the Courthouse to assist Mary Smith on her eviction hearing. When he didn't see her in or around the Hearing Room after 10:45, he checked with the clerk to see if there was a change in the hearing. The clerk had no record at all of an eviction hearing for Mary Smith. Perry's curiosity got the best of him and he went to the address that the woman had given him the day before.

At the Maryland Apartments, he found apartment 4 on the first floor towards the back of the building. He found the door ajar and listened outside for a moment before he opened the door further and walked in. He looked around and found the studio apartment in complete disarray. Some of the furniture was overturned, there was broken glass on the floor and clothing pulled out of dresser drawers. Then he found a woman's purse under an overturned end table. He looked inside the purse and saw identification belonging to a Miss Angela Totman. Perry thought back to the day before wondering where he was when he heard that name. When it came to him, he stepped out into the hallway to use the payphone to call Lieutenant Tragg.

"Good morning, Lieutenant."

Tragg had a smirk on his face and leaned forward over his desk in his office. "Well, Perry... What have I done to deserve a call from _you_ today? I hope you're not standing over a dead body or something."

When Perry told him the nature of his call, Tragg told him he'd meet him in the apartment right away.

Tragg brought Sergeant Brice along and just after noon they were joined by FBI Agent Russ Coffman. They began going over the small apartment thoroughly. They found a suitcase belonging to Angela Totman – some of the clothing dotted with blood stains. A drawer in a small table contained papers and publicity photographs in the name of Roxy Marino. That discovery got the attention of Agent Coffman right away. He told the other men that she was associated with the Kansas City Crime Family and had recently relocated to Los Angeles where she was a lounge singer in mob-owned joints. Perry looked over the photograph. Right away he knew he'd been had by _Mary Smith_.

It was nearly 2pm when the men gathered all of the evidence from the apartment and went back to Police Headquarters to sort it out. Perry quickly gave his statement to Tragg's typist detailing the reason he went to the apartment and what he observed. When he got a free moment, he saw that it was nearly three o'clock and obviously he was going to be late meeting Della in San Diego. He left in a hurry for his office so he could call Della and explain his delay.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

The Legal Secretary's conference was winding down ahead of schedule and a hotel messenger boy found Della in the back of the ballroom mingling with other attendees.

"Miss Street, we're holding a phone call for you in the Manager's Office behind the front desk. If you'll come with me please..."

Della excused herself from the conference and walked with the messenger boy to the office. "Do you know who the call is from?"

"No, ma'am. But I think it must be important because we don't normally hold calls for our guests in this manner."

Della smiled and nodded to the Hotel Manger. "I'm Miss Street. Thank you for holding the call."

"My pleasure, Miss Street. I'll give you some privacy." The Manager left the office after handing the phone to Della.

"Hello? This is Miss Street."

"Della... I'm glad they tracked you down..." Perry knew that he'd have some explaining to do.

"Perry? Where are you? I can be ready to go in about an hour... I was allowed a late check out from the suite. If you're almost here, maybe I'll just meet you in the bar. I just have a few more things to wrap up here..."

Perry interrupted her before she could say any more. "Della – hold on a minute... I'm still in Los Angeles... Something's come up..."

Della's brow furrowed. "You're still in L.A.?" Her voice grew a little louder.

"I can explain. It has to do with _Miss Smith_ – also known as Roxy Marino - and the disappearance of a witness to the Marty Cameron murder..." He waited for Della's reply but she didn't say anything. "Hello? Della? Are you still there?"

Della let out a sigh of frustration. "I'm still here, Perry!"

He heard the anger in her voice. "Listen... I've arranged for you to keep your suite for another night. I'll be there first thing in the morning. I'll be meeting with Lieutenant Tragg this evening. Gertie's clearing out our schedule for Monday and Tuesday. We'll just start our weekend a day later..." He hoped that she'd be fine with the change of schedule for their weekend.

"How could you do this, Perry? The whole idea of going away for a long weekend was to get you away from your job – even if only for a couple of days. And now you find a way to ruin that!"

"I'm sorry, Della. But this is important and I'm helping Tragg and the Feds..."

It was Della's turn to cut off his excuses. "Obviously, your job is more important than spending time away from your office. Once again, a damsel-in-distress walks in to your office, shakes her hips, kisses you all over and you drop everything to help her out! And in this case, _any_ attorney could have helped her out. As always, your simple case has turned into a mess!"

"Della, you know that you're more important to me than this job... I'm just asking for you to be a little understanding right now. Look, I'll be there first thing in the morning. I'll make this up to you..."

"Where have I heard _that_ before?" Della didn't hold back her anger any longer. "Let's just forget the whole weekend! I'll find a ride back to L.A. with one of the other girls in the morning or I'll take a bus or something. I should have known better!" Tears formed in Della's eyes.

"Della, please... Look, I'll try to come down there later tonight..."

"Forget it Perry. I'm going back to the conference to wrap things up. Maybe, just _maybe_, I'll see you back home tomorrow! Goodbye!" She hung up the phone and wiped the tears from her eyes. She took in a deep breath, slowly let it out trying to regain her composure, and left the Manager's Office.

The Manager spoke to her as she came out of the office. "All the arrangements have been made for you to remain another night with us in the suite, Miss Street." Della thanked him and returned to the ballroom.

Perry slowly hung up the phone and dropped his head down. Gertie interrupted his gloom when she called him on the intercom. "I've taken care of your schedule for Monday and Tuesday, Mr. Mason. I just have one more appointment to take care of for Della, but that shouldn't be a problem to reschedule."

Perry sat back and lit a cigarette. "Thank you Gertie. And if you want to cut out for the rest of the day, I'm fine with that."

"Thanks Mr. Mason. I might just do that."

Perry got back on the phone and called the operator to connect him with a florist shop in San Diego.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Under the watchful eyes of Coccini and Solito, Della and Maggie left the ballroom with leftover materials from the conference and walked up to Maggie's room. Della had already told Maggie that she would need a ride back to Los Angeles with her and Maggie was delighted. They were both staying another night so they decided to meet with some of the other women in the bar for after-conference beverages. Before she went down to the bar, Della stopped by her room to freshen up. She was about to leave when she heard a knock on the door. Thinking that it might be Maggie, she opened the door and found a bellhop with a large bouquet of flowers.

"Miss Street? These are for you."

Della opened the door for him to enter the room and he placed the flowers on a table for her. She reached for her purse to tip him.

The bellhop waved her off. "The tip's been taken care of Ma'am."

Coccini slowly walked in the hallway a few doors down from Della's room and waited for the bellhop to leave. He was planning to make his move before Della could close the door. As he saw the bellhop coming out of the door, he had to walk by when he saw Maggie come to Della's suite.

When the bellhop walked out, Maggie tapped on the door. "Are you walking back downstairs, Della?" Maggie stepped into the room and saw Della's flowers. "Oh my. That's quite a bouquet!"

Della was frowning and had the card from the flowers in her hand. "They're from Perry... He thinks that I'll forgive him for ruining our weekend plans..." She tossed the card onto the table and smiled. "Let's get out of here. I could use a good stiff drink!"

By seven o'clock Della was feeling the effects of too many martinis and decided to return to her suite for the night. She picked up a room service menu at the front desk as she made her way to the elevator.

Coccini watched Della from across the crowded lobby and nodded to Solito who was watching from the bar. Coccini walked over to Solito and laid out the plan. "Give me ten minutes. Have the car ready by the side door." Solito left the hotel.

Up in her suite, Della called room service with her order and kicked off her high heels. She opened her briefcase and put away notes from the conference while she waited for her dinner to be delivered. She brought out her large suitcase and packed away most of her clothes from the closet. She'd be all ready to return to Los Angeles first thing in the morning. She closed up the suitcase and was walking it over towards the door when she heard a knock on the door. She stopped to grab her purse on the way so she could tip the room service man.

When she opened the door, she was surprised to see a man in a tidy pin-striped suit standing there instead of room service. When she looked closer, she saw the revolver in his hand.

"You're checking out, lady."

Della tried to slam the door on him, but Coccini caught the door and pushed her back inside.

"We can do this the easy way, or the hard way, lady. I'm leaving it up to you!"

"Who are you? What do you want?"

Coccini looked around the room but his gun was still pointed at Della. "Get your shoes on. I said you're checking out... Now!"

Della looked around on the floor for her shoes. She nervously watched him while she put on her high heels. "What's the meaning of this?"

Coccini let her know that he meant business and made up a story to gain her cooperation. "Shut up! We've got your boss and now we've got you. Cooperate and you'll both be okay. Give me any problems and your boss will end up dead!"

Suddenly Della regretted hanging up the phone on Perry. He might have been in danger himself or trying to warn her about this. "Okay... What do you want me to do?"

Coccini saw Della's luggage by the door and he picked it up. "We're getting out of here. I've got this gun pointed at you. Walk down the hall to the stairs. We're going out the side door when we get downstairs. Now grab your purse and let's move. One peep out of you and you'll regret it."

Coccini got Della in the waiting car outside and Solito sped away from the hotel.

**TBC**

Thanks for all of your comments and thanks for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

The early evening meeting set up in Hamilton Burger's office was so crowded that he moved it into his adjacent conference room. Russ Coffman had three men from the Los Angeles FBI office with him. Dan McGill and Mack DeConcini represented the investigative team from Las Vegas. Lieutenant Tragg brought along Sergeant Brice and two other uniformed officers from the LAPD. Burger laid out the facts of his investigation as he knew them so far. He used the flow chart that Dan and Mack put together back in Las Vegas. He highlighted only Vincenzo Sharpelli and his associates in the Las Vegas and Los Angeles areas.

"Since the murder of Marty Cameron in his father Linus's home, Vincenzo Sharpelli's been in town throwing his weight around trying to get his son, Antonio Sharpelli, off the hook for the murder. So far, he's scared off two witnesses - Linus Cameron and Gabe Bergman. A day after the murder, Bergman flew to London to work on a motion picture there, and we've heard that Cameron's in Mexico. Sharpelli's tried to break his son out of the county jail... He's tried to bully Perry Mason into defending his son in court... And now we've found evidence that he might be involved in the disappearance of another key witness to the murder of Marty Cameron... Lieutenant Tragg has been searching for leads in Angela Totman's disappearance. Today he uncovered some evidence that ties another one of Vincenzo Sharpelli's associates to Miss Totman's disappearance."

Burger passed around a photograph for the men to look at and continued his briefing. "We think that Roxy Marino, a lounge singer in several mob hangouts here in L.A., has some ties to Miss Totman's situation. We've got a warrant for Marino's arrest out of Kansas City for multiple counts of embezzlement and forgery - and authorities in K.C. have agreed to extradite her. She has numerous aliases, but we'll refer to her as Roxy Marino until we get her fingerprint card from Kansas City with her true identity."

He brought their attention back to the flow chart. "Agents McGill and DeConcini brought along some paperwork from Las Vegas that we can use here in California to at least try to detain Vincenzo Sharpelli for a few days while we put together a Federal Racketeering case on him. As you can see on this chart, Vincenzo has several associates running around town for him."

Burger then passed around booking photos for the men to view. "We're also looking for Junior Coccini and Freddy Solito. Both of them have local arrest warrants for Obstruction of Justice – in particular witness tampering. If we can put any one of these characters behind bars soon, we just might be able to come up with information on the whereabouts of Angela Totman. She's a major part of the Prosecution's case against Antonio Sharpelli and we don't want this murder case to slip through the cracks. Over the past ten years we've worked too hard to put a lid on organized crime in Los Angeles and we want to send them a message that they won't get away with this here in L.A."

Tragg took over the briefing. "Tonight we're going to fan out and see who we can put behind bars. For this operation to be a success, we need to keep this meeting completely confidential. We're trying to flush out some rats on the LAPD that have direct ties to Vinny Sharpelli, so if this is going to work, we need to keep all of our information amongst ourselves through Mr. Burger's office. The only other outsider involved in this is Perry Mason and I'll be working with him tonight. Mr. Mason is seriously considering a civil harassment restraining order against Sharpelli since he made a visit to Mr. Mason's office the other day and implied a credible threat of violence there. We can only initiate that court order if we come across Mr. Sharpelli soon. Now before we go, does anyone have any questions?"

The room was silent. Burger ended the meeting. "We'll meet back here tomorrow morning at ten o'clock for a debriefing of tonight's operation. Good luck gentlemen!"

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Perry paced back and forth in his office waiting for Lieutenant Tragg's call about where they were going to meet to try and track down Roxy Marino. It was Tragg's idea to bring Perry along because he hoped that if they came across Miss Marino, Perry's rapport with her might just soften her up to gain her cooperation in the investigation.

When his private phone line rang, Perry was hoping it would be Della calling, but it turned out to be Tragg.

"Hello, Perry. We're all set. We're going to start at one of Old Man Licata's clubs in Burbank called 'Five O'clock' and move on from there. Are you sure you're up for this?"

"I've come this far, Lieutenant, so finding out more about Miss Marino will more than satisfy my curiosity."

"Okay, Perry. I'll meet you in front of your building in ten minutes."

After hanging up the phone from Tragg's call, Perry tried to call Della's room in San Diego again. He let it ring a dozen times before he gave up on the call and left the office. He was still wondering if she'd really be returning to Los Angeles in the morning and completely canceling their weekend altogether. He knew he was in trouble but was hoping that he could at least talk to her before morning. He decided that he'd try to call the hotel desk again later and send a messenger up to her room to have her call him.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

For the first two hours of her ride from the hotel in San Diego, Della was kept on the floor in the back seat of the car that Coccini stuffed her into. When she spoke to her captors right away about her discomfort, she was told to "shut up". The night was dark and she had no idea where they were driving her to. She would see street lights occasionally, but she knew that the road that they were driving on was probably not along a major route. She thought about ways to get them to stop so that she could look around.

"Listen, gentlemen. I don't know about you, but I really need to use a restroom. If I promise not to give you any trouble, will you please find a place to stop?"

Coccini was riding in the back seat with her. He spoke to Solito. "How far before we hit that all-night diner on the route?"

Solito kept his eyes on the road but turned his head to the side to speak back to Coccini. "About another twenty minutes. We can probably use some gasoline, too. Then we won't need anymore stops before we get to the shack."

Coccini looked down at Della. "You hear that? Twenty minutes. We'll make a quick stop so don't try anything stupid. Here's how it's gonna work... You're gonna pretend to be a little tipsy and I'll walk with you into the restroom. If there's anyone in the place they won't think nothin' of it. Then we walk out the same way. You try anything and I'll put a bullet in you!"

When they stopped at the diner, Solito pulled up to the gas pump and an attendant came up to the car to put the gas in and clean the windshield. Coccini helped Della up onto the back seat and they got out of the car on the side away from the man pumping the gas. Walking towards the entrance to the diner, Della did as she was told, but tried to look for any road signs or other hints about where she was. She could only see that the name of the place was Larry's Diner and Mobil gas was being pumped into the car. Coccini had a tight grip on Della's arm and she could feel the barrel of the revolver poking into her side.

As they walked in the door she saw a few people seated in the diner and a waitress serving coffee. Nobody even looked up at them as they walked in. Coccini walked Della right into the ladies room and stood right outside the stall door while she used the toilet. When they left the ladies room, Della continued to look for hints as to her whereabouts. She only saw that she was somewhere in California and it was after ten o'clock. Coccini left Della in the back seat of the car again and told Solito to keep an eye on her while he went back into the diner. When Coccini came back to the car, he had hamburgers and coffee.

Coccini got in the back seat of the car. "Here. Take the burger and coffee. It might be the last thing to eat or drink until we get to the shack." He watched Solito go into the diner to pay for the gas.

Della shifted around on the floor of the car and accepted the burger and coffee. "Look Mister whoever-you-are, I haven't given you any trouble. Would you mind if I sat on the seat? I don't plan on jumping out or anything if that's why you have me on the floor..." She was trying to at least get a view of a highway sign to know where she was.

Coccini was eating his burger. "When we get back on the road you can move. Eat your burger till we get moving again."

When Solito returned to the car, Coccini stepped out to talk to him. "I called the boss. As soon as we get to the shack we can leave the dame with 'Fatso' and 'Dice'. We'll get a little rest at the shack then head back to L.A." Solito nodded and they got back in the car for the rest of the long drive to 'the shack'.

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Dan McGill and Mack DeConcini concentrated their investigative efforts in locating Vinny Sharpelli. Every minor lead brought them to a dead end. They tried all of the local hotels that the syndicate had major connections with, but nobody was talking. They couldn't even buy information for twice the going price.

Since they were so familiar with all of the local thugs, Russ Coffman and his team were out looking for Coccini and Solito. They went apartment to apartment talking to the women that these thugs were known to _date_, but they all claimed that they hadn't seen the men for weeks. By midnight, they were ready to call it a night.

They met with Dan and Mack, then compared notes on where they'd been. They all agreed on one thing – for a Friday night, things sure were quiet in the world of organized crime in Los Angeles. That made them nervous.

Back in their hotel room, Dan and Mack drank a few whiskeys and decided to get some rest ahead of what they knew was going to be a long weekend. Dan really wanted to get this case over with and get back to Salt Lake City. He finished his drink and got in bed, drifting off to sleep thinking of his girl Crystal.

Perry and Tragg didn't have any luck finding Roxy Marino in any of the mob hangouts they checked out. Perry got back to his apartment around two in the morning and poured himself a brandy. He sat in his chair and chain-smoked a half a pack of cigarettes thinking over why he was so obsessed with involving himself in tracking down Roxy Marino. Perry couldn't come up with even one good reason. He recalled Della's words about Roxy: "...she's a gun moll if I ever saw one..."

Della was always so right he thought to himself. And now he's turned what could have been a nice weekend into a disaster for them. He called the hotel and asked if a messenger would deliver a message to her room. He was told that the messengers were gone for the night and as a hotel policy, no messages could be delivered after 10pm anyway. He poured another brandy and rubbed his forehead. Slouched in his easy chair, he eventually fell asleep as a cigarette burned itself out in the ashtray on the table next to him.

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Della's long drive came to an end around two in the morning. She had been allowed to sit up in the back seat, but Coccini covered her head with one of her blazers from her luggage. She couldn't see through the covering so she still had no idea where she was. She must have dozed off because the car was stopped and Coccini was unloading the trunk when she sat up and took the cover off of her head.

Coccini opened the car door. "Get out. You're home sweet home..."

Della grabbed her purse and awkwardly stepped out of the car in her high heels onto a gravel driveway next to a dimly lit ranch house. She looked around in the pitch black night to check out her surroundings but right away Coccini grabbed her arm tightly to walk her to the house. "Grab your bag. Let's get inside before the coyotes surround us."

As they walked towards the house the front door opened and a short, chubby man wearing a gun in a shoulder holster walked out. "What took you guys so long? We were expecting you yesterday afternoon."

They walked inside the house. "Well we're here now, Fatso. I hope you've got a drink for me in here." Coccini dropped a box of canned goods by the door. He led Della further into the large sparsely-furnished living room of the house.

"Leave your bag here a second." He turned back to the chubby man who had made his way into the open kitchen area. "Hey Fatso, where's this dame stayin'?"

"She's going in the room next to the kitchen here. We secured the window in there. The only way for her to try and escape is to get by either me or Dice - and one of us will always be staying out here."

Coccini turned to Della. "So now you know why you're here. You're going to be our guest until our boss gives us the word to let you go." He pointed to her bedroom. "Take your bag in there and make yourself comfortable." He looked back to Fatso. "Did you nail the bathroom window shut, too?"

"All secure. She won't get out of here." He laughed. "And if she does, she'll be walking a long way to civilization – that is, _if_ she survives a walk in the desert!"

A man stepped out of another bedroom and yawned as he walked into the living room. He scratched the thinning hair on the top of his head. His dress shirt was open at the collar and untucked from his pants. He had a gun in a holster on his belt. "What the hell took you guys so long?" He looked around the room and spotted Della. "Whoa. They said we'd be guarding a real doll and they weren't kidding!" He began to tuck his shirt into his pants trying to look presentable.

Coccini shut him up. "Don't get any ideas, Dice! You even think of touchin' her and you're a dead man when the boss finds out."

Dice frowned. "I wasn't thinkin' of anything like that. I just want my pay and when this job's done, I'm goin' back to the craps table..." He went back into the bunk room that he came out of.

Della still hadn't moved. She was looking around the house for a telephone. Coccini watched her checking the place out.

"What are you waiting for sweetheart? Go make yourself at home in your bedroom." Coccini found a bottle of whiskey at the bar and poured himself a drink.

Della picked up her bag and headed for her bedroom. She put her luggage down and partially closed the door. She stood behind the door and listened to the men in the living room. She was hoping that they would say something about where the ranch house was located.

Coccini looked to Fatso. "I brought another box of soup and some canned tomatoes like you wanted. If you think you need any more supplies, you're on your own. We're heading back first thing in the morning." Fatso walked over to pick up the box and put the contents of the box in the kitchen pantry.

Solito walked in the door. "I hope there's room for me in the bunk room. I'm beat." He made his way over to the bar and poured himself a shot of brandy. He swallowed it with one big gulp. "Ahh, that stuff's good...The car's ready to go first thing in the morning. We'll need gas in town on our way out."

Coccini was sitting at a large dining table. "There should be plenty of room to bunk down back there. Dice is back there right now. Have another drink, Freddy. It'll put you right out so we can get some sleep and get out of here when the sun comes up. Vinny will wanna know that we're on the way back first thing."

"Good idea, Junior. If Dice stays back there tonight, too, I'll need a knock-out drink so I won't have to put up with his snoring! Last time the boys all stayed here we were ready to toss him out to the barn!"

While the men sat in the living room drinking, Della took a small notebook out of her purse and began writing down notes. She started with names. 'Fatso, Dice, Junior, Freddy'. In capital letters she wrote down 'VINNY'. She added 'coyotes' and 'desert'. She'd have to wait to see if they'd ever mention the name of the town that they were talking about.

Eventually she sat down on the bed wondering where they were holding Perry. She wondered how these men had taken Perry against his will like her captor had said. Figuring that she wouldn't be able to make an attempt to leave in the darkness of the night, she curled up in a blanket on the bed. While worrying about Perry, she fell asleep.

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As the sun came up in Los Angeles, Dan McGill was already out of bed finishing his exercises as Mack DeConcini was waking up.

"You're a nut, Dan... I don't know of anyone that tries to stay in shape like you do..."

Dan was slightly winded. "It would do you some good to at least try a few push-ups once in a while. You never know when you're gonna need some extra muscle to get you through a bad situation."

Mack pointed to his gun setting on the nightstand between their hotel room beds. "My roscoe there is all the muscle I need to get me through a bad situation..." He got out of his bed and made his way towards the bathroom. "I'll get cleaned up while you finish your workout."

While Mack took a shower, Dan got on the phone to call Crystal. He charged the long-distance call to the room. Crystal answered her phone right away.

Dan felt good hearing her voice. "Hi babe. I hope you got my telegram..."

"I _did_ get your telegram, Agent McGill. Are you really in Los Angeles now?"

"I am. But there's a glimmer of hope that we'll get this wrapped up soon... How are you, Crystal? Are you getting ready to go to work?"

"I'm okay, Dan... I'll be working an extra half of a shift today. I took the extra shift since I don't have anything else to do on a Saturday night..." Crystal was flirting, but Dan thought otherwise.

He thought that she sounded disappointed in him so he sounded frustrated in his reply. "I wish that this job would stop sending me all over the country at the drop of a hat. I'd give just about anything to be back in Salt Lake City right now..."

Crystal was consoling. "Just do the best that you can, Dan. You'll be back soon – I hope."

"Yeah... Right..." His defeatist attitude came through.

"Look, you sound a little frustrated right now. Maybe you should go have some breakfast if you haven't eaten yet. You'll feel better... I'm gonna leave for work right now."

Dan thought that she just didn't want to hear his whining any more. "Okay – I get it. You go do your job and I'll just go do mine. Have a nice day, Crystal!"

She suddenly felt bad that their conversation was not as pleasant as their other calls usually were. "All right Dan. Will you be able to call me later tonight?"

"I don't know... I will if I can..."

Crystal sounded defensive. "Well if it's that much of an inconvenience, don't bother..."

Dan shook his head and resisted the urge to slam the phone down. "Goodbye Crystal." Dan hung up the phone. He wondered why he was acting like such an idiot. He got down on the floor and started doing more push-ups.

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Perry woke up in his easy chair in his living room and looked at his watch right away. It was almost seven o'clock. He called Della's room right away and lit a cigarette waiting for her to answer. The phone rang about twenty times before he hung up. He decided to go and take a shower right away so that he could leave for San Diego as soon as he talks to Della. After his shower he would try her room again and if she didn't answer, he'd ask the hotel front desk to deliver a message.

When the phone rang unanswered in Della's room again, Perry called the front desk. Jack, the hotel manager, agreed to have a messenger boy deliver his message. Ten minutes later, Perry's phone rang. He was hoping Della was in a better mood.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Mason? This is Jack. We tried to deliver your message to Miss Street. She's still not back in her room."

Perry sat up straight in his chair. "What do you mean, 'she's still not back in her room'?"

"It's the same as last evening when room service tried to deliver her dinner order. They didn't get an answer so they used their pass key to bring in the food. The room was unoccupied. She's still not in her room."

Perry got concerned. _She wasn't around to accept her room service order_? He continued to think it over. "Thank you for checking. I'll try to call you back in a bit."

Perry hung up the phone and called Paul's answering service right away. He left a message for Paul to call him back right away. If Paul was still in La Jolla, he would send him to San Diego to check on Della. He wondered where in the hell she stayed last night. He felt a twinge of jealousy thinking that maybe she spent the night with another man just to spite him. He shook his head and dismissed _that_ thought right away. Della could never be that spiteful.

While waiting for Paul to call, Perry made some coffee. It was thirty minutes before Paul returned his call.

"Please don't tell me that you're gonna mess up my weekend down here, Perry... I was planning to go sailing with this beauty I met down here... And why are you calling from home? Shouldn't you be checked in to the Vista Del Mar by now?"

Perry's tone was serious. "It's about Della, Paul. She should still be in San Diego but nobody can find her at the hotel. I'm getting worried. Things have changed a little around here since you left."

Perry sounded a little more intense than Paul was used to. "Okay, Perry. Take it easy. I'm about fifteen minutes away from San Diego. What hotel was she staying at?"

Perry gave Paul the information and told him to call him back in his office when he checks the hotel. Perry ran out his door to go to the office.

Paul's call came about forty-five minutes later. "I went up into the room with the manager. Della still has luggage there – a small overnight bag and a cosmetics case in the bathroom. Her purse is gone but her briefcase is still there. The gal that she drove down here with, uh, _Maggie_, said that she hasn't seen her since Della left the bar alone to go up to her room at about seven last night... She said that they were going to drive back to L.A. the first thing this morning."

The main phone line for Perry's office rang. "Hold on a second, Paul. My other line is ringing. It might be her!"

Perry put Paul's call on hold and answered the other line. "Mason..."

"Well, Mr. Mason. I'm glad that I found you in your office. They say that you're always available..." It wasn't Della on the line.

"Who is this?"

"I'm surprised you don't know, Mr. Mason... It's Vincenzo Sharpelli calling..."

Perry had a lump in his throat. "What do you want, Mr. Sharpelli? I thought I made it clear to you the other day that I can't help you. As a matter of fact, if you keep calling here, I'll be forced to file a civil harassment restraining order against you and your men..."

"_That_, Mr. Mason, would be a big mistake right now. You see, Mr. Mason, I think you'll be a lot more willing to work on my son's defense now... I'll make a deal with you, Mr. Mason... When you successfully defend my boy on his murder charges, I'll return your secretary, Della Street..."

Perry swallowed hard and paused to calm the anger he felt rising inside of him. It all became clear to him now. "If Miss Street is harmed at all Mr. Sharpelli, I'll be sure to see to it that you rot in hell - along with your son!"

"Tsk, tsk, Mr. Mason. I look forward to seeing you at the arraignment on Monday." Vinny disconnected the line.

Seething with anger, Perry got Paul back on the line. "Gather Della's things up, Paul. I need you back here right away. Sharpelli's got Della!"

**TBC**

I appreciate all of your comments and reviews. Thanks for staying with the story!


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the desert ranch house as Della woke up. When her eyes adjusted to the unfamiliar surroundings in the room she remembered the uncomfortable ride to the ranch house in the back of a car on the floor. Her thoughts carried her back to the secretary's conference in San Diego less than a day ago. She felt a twinge of guilt for having been so angry with Perry when she last talked to him on the phone. She wondered if he even knew that she was not on her way back to Los Angeles. She also wondered if Vinny Sharpelli had also taken Perry captive as she was told by her captors. She covered her head with a bed pillow and tried to compose herself.

A few minutes later, Della sat up on the edge of her bed and looked around on the floor for her shoes. She cursed herself for not having any flat shoes in her luggage and slipped into her high heels. Some of her belongings were still back at the hotel in San Diego. She was still clothed in the skirt and blouse that she was wearing when she was taken from her hotel room the night before. After freshening up in her bathroom, she straightened out her skirt and walked out into the living room.

Fatso was in the kitchen with an apron around his waist beating eggs in a bowl, a gun still in a shoulder holster strapped under his left arm. He looked over to Della as she walked further into the room. "Make yourself comfortable, lady. I hope you like scrambled eggs."

Della made an attempt to smile. "Yes, I like scrambled eggs. I like coffee, too."

Fatso pointed over to the stove. "Fresh coffee in the pot on the stove. You'll find a cup over there in the cupboard. Help yourself."

Della found a cup and poured herself some coffee. "Do you mind if I ask you why I'm here? Or even where I am?"

Fatso poured the egg mixture into a frying pan. "Sorry, lady. I'm not allowed to answer your questions. I'm just here to cook and make sure that you don't leave. And don't bother asking Dice any questions like that, either. He's also just here to make sure that you don't leave."

She was trying to build a rapport with Fatso. "Well in case you didn't know, my name is Della. Won't you please call me Della?"

"Whatever you say, lady." He turned away and placed some bread in the toaster. "Why don't you sit down at the table? I'll have breakfast for you in a minute."

Della sat down with her coffee and saw Dice walk in the front door. He brushed his hands off on his pants and adjusted the gun in the holster on his belt. "I piled more firewood by the porch. I ran out of firewood for the fireplace last night. It got kinda chilly out here on the couch. Breakfast ready yet?"

"Gimme a minute."

Dice made his way over to the kitchen to pour himself a cup of coffee. He sat down at the table across from Della. "I hope you were warm enough in the back room last night, lady. Now that Freddy and Junior are gone, I can give you _their_ blankets if you need them tonight."

Della tried to smile. "I was okay, thank you. I'd just like to know why I'm here – and how long I'll be here – wherever we are..."

He took a sip of his coffee and replied. "Don't ask any questions, lady. You just need to sit back and relax. Think of this place as your vacation home. Just don't try to leave and we'll all get along real good..."

Fatso brought plates and forks over to the table. "Chow will be right up. Eat all of your breakfast, lady, and maybe I'll let you decide what we'll have for lunch..."

Della thought to herself that it was going to take a lot of her patience to get along with these goons. She was already getting irritated by their tough-guy New Jersey accents. It was no use fighting them – yet.

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A tired Lieutenant Tragg answered the phone in his office after one ring. "Homicide. Lieutenant Tragg."

"I'm glad I caught you in your office, Lieutenant. I've got a big problems right now..."

Tragg's reply was casual. "I was hoping to talk to you, Perry... After you left last night I got another..."

Perry cut him off right away. "Hold on! I said I've got _problems_. Right now I could care less about Roxy Marino or whatever her name is... Della is _missing_, Lieutenant! Vinny Sharpelli's got her hidden away somewhere. He called me and said that unless I _successfully_ defend his son, he'll be holding Della captive..."

"Dear God, Perry! When did he call? Where are you now? Burger will need to hear about this right away!"

"He called my office this morning. He must have grabbed Della down in San Diego. I'm still in my office."

"Stay there, Perry. I'll get a hold of Russ Coffman right away and we'll be at your office soon!"

Waiting for Tragg and the FBI to arrive, Perry was pacing back and forth in his office, practically chain smoking his cigarettes. He was wondering how he could successfully defend a man that he knew was guilty of murder. The stakes were high on this one. If the newspapers weren't drooling over this murder case yet, they probably would be soon. He needed to find a way to keep this case out of the spotlight. Every detail of the case would be sensationalized adding to the difficulty in defending a case like this. He needed a shot of bourbon to calm himself down and seriously considered it, but dismissed that thought from his mind and made a pot of coffee instead.

Within fifteen minutes Tragg was beating his fist on Perry's front office door. Perry unlocked the door and invited Tragg and Russ Coffman in. Before closing the door, Perry took a look both ways in the hallway to see if it was clear. Anyone walking around in the hallways on the ninth floor on a Saturday was probably in the wrong place. He locked the door and ushered the men into his office.

Tragg was first to speak. "If Sharpelli really has Della, we need the help of the FBI. Especially if the mob is involved. I'll chase him to the ends of the earth if any harm comes to Della!"

Perry nodded in agreement with Tragg and invited them to sit down around the conference table in the office. "Please sit down - I made some coffee." Perry brought out cups and pointed to the coffee pot. "I don't know what to do, Agent Coffman..." He sat down with his elbows on the table and brought his hands up to hold his head. Tragg poured coffee for the three of them.

Russ tried to keep Perry calm. "First of all, I want to assure you that my colleagues and I on the Bureau will do everything we can to get Miss Street back safely."

Perry dropped his hands from his head and couldn't be consoled. "Safely!? We're talking about the _syndicate_ here, Agent Coffman! A ruthless bunch of thugs that time after time have..."

Russ interrupted his tirade. "But listen, Mr. Mason. We've successfully rescued hundreds of people in similar circumstances. You've just got to trust me. Trust the FBI. We know how these thugs operate and Vinny Sharpelli can be put away."

"Right now, if Mr. Sharpelli is '_put away_' as you say, that could be fatal for Della. I won't cooperate with anything that puts her further in danger." Perry spoke solemnly.

Tragg put his coffee down. "We won't do anything that will harm Della, Perry. Why don't you come with us to Burger's office? We're having that debriefing in about twenty minutes. You can hear everything that we've been working on and the status of this investigation."

"I can't leave here, Lieutenant. I just know that if Della finds a way, she'll call here. I can't miss that call! I _won't_ miss that call... Paul Drake should be here in a couple of hours. I want him in on this when you meet again."

Russ and Tragg looked at each other. Russ aired his concerns. "As much as I'd like to have another man on this, I don't think that's such a good idea right now. Let us run that by Burger and we'll let you know."

Tragg added his two cents worth. "Right now I agree with Agent Coffman, Perry. This case is complicated enough right now. We're not only fighting the syndicate, we're dealing with information leaks _internally_ on the case. Give us a day or two. We'll let you know about bringing Paul in as soon as we can."

Perry was nervously rubbing his hands together. "A day or two... I don't _have_ a day or two... I need to find Della _now_!"

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The debriefing meeting in Burger's office started long after ten o'clock. Tragg and Coffman met privately with Burger before all the other men assembled in the conference room. Burger told them that he'd be willing to hold off on any charges against Vincenzo Sharpelli to take him into custody. He wanted to meet with Perry right after the debriefing.

Burger called the meeting to order and gave the update on Della's disappearance.

"I'm afraid we've had another disturbing setback since we met last night. Vincenzo Sharpelli made a phone call to Perry Mason this morning and coerced Perry into defending Antonio Sharpelli starting with the arraignment on Monday morning. To gain Perry's cooperation, he's holding Perry's secretary captive somewhere. Our game plan will need to change here and now."

Russ Coffman interjected right away. "Lieutenant Tragg and I met with Mr. Mason this morning. He wants to bring in his Private Investigator Paul Drake in to assist with locating the secretary – Della Street. On the way over here, Tragg and I thought it over. Drake has operatives all over the place working for him, so in one way that might be beneficial to us. But on the other hand, too many cooks will spoil our soup. Our confidential investigation stands a bigger chance of being compromised. We agreed to open it up here for discussion and suggestions. Anyone want to comment?"

Dan McGill spoke up. "As far as bringing in another man, I'm all in favor of it under these circumstances. These P.I.'s have an uncanny ability to come up with useful information. They can bend the rules more than we can... And as far as the missing secretary goes, I worked on a similar situation back in Chicago a couple of years ago. Accardo and a few others in the Outfit held an Alderman's daughter hostage until they got a favorable vote on a pending ordinance change. We stayed tight-lipped about the kidnapping, stalled the ordinance vote, and located the girl while we stalled. Do you think that will work in this case?"

Burger pondered the thought. "It might. We're only _arraigning_ Antonio Sharpelli on Monday morning. With Perry's cooperation, we can stall until a preliminary hearing. That will give you some time to track down Della Street."

They all nodded in agreement to delay the trial as much as possible. Before the meeting broke up, Burger told the men that he would meet with Perry and Paul Drake before any decision about Paul's involvement would be made. For now, the entire strategy was to find leads on the whereabouts of Della. Rounding up Sharpelli's cohorts was on hold. If any of them were located, they would just tail them.

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In the confines of the ranch house, Della was becoming a little stir-crazy. She was allowed to walk near the windows of the two-bedroom two-bathroom house, but was warned to stay away from the doors. She learned that the rear door in the kitchen was barricaded shut with only a gun turret to use as an opening. The only way in and out of the house was through the front door that she came in. Looking out a window to the north, she saw a large horse barn. The front door faced to the east and she could only see a car in the driveway. Further out she could see a dirt road and a power pole with a line coming towards the house. She thought that a second line coming to the house could be a phone line but she didn't see a phone in the house. Her bedroom and the bunk room were on the south side of the house. A kitchen window facing to the west showed a large storage shed and a rusty old wind mill.

Della sat around in the living room area where she had a choice of sitting on one of two sofas or any of three easy chairs. The sofas could be opened into a bed where either Fatso or Dice spent their night guarding the door making sure Della couldn't walk out. The dining table near the kitchen area was big enough to seat eight people. She surmised that this ranch house was a hideout for mobsters on the run. Their bar along a wall near the kitchen was well-stocked with several bottles of liquor and mixers. Her only salvation in the room was listening to a scratchy-sounding music radio and finding a bookshelf filled with Louis L'Amour paperback books. She picked out a book and read while Dice played a solitaire card game on the dining table. Fatso was baking bread in the kitchen. There was not a lot of conversation between any of them.

Della was paying close attention to the radio and heard that the station's call sign was KENO radio at 1460 on the am radio dial. The station was broadcasting from the El Rancho Casino in Las Vegas. The signal was faded at times so she knew that they were not very close to Las Vegas.

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Around noon Paul Drake used a key to walk in Perry's back door. He expected to find Perry at his desk as he wandered further into the office but Perry wasn't there. He glanced towards the kitchen still carrying Della's belongings and the flowers in a vase, but stopped when he heard Perry's voice.

"I'm in here, Paul..."

Paul followed the sound of Perry's voice and walked in to Della's office to find a depressed-looking Perry sitting at Della's desk with his feet up on it. Paul placed the flowers on the desk. Perry took his feet off the desk and leaned forward on the desk with his hands clasped together under his chin.

Paul laid Della's briefcase on a table near her desk. "Any word?"

Perry shook his head. "No..." Perry took a rose out of the vase and snapped off the long stem. "Burger's on his way over here. He wants to meet with us."

"Fine by me... I'm assuming that the Feds are all over this..."

"They are..."

"We'll find her, Perry..." Paul pulled a chair over to the desk and sat down. He lit a cigarette for himself and took another one from his pack to give to Perry.

Perry was still quiet for a bit but then lit the cigarette taking a long drag on it and blowing out the smoke slowly. "How could I be so stupid?" He rested the cigarette in an ashtray, shook his head, and began wringing his hands together.

"You can't blame yourself for this, Perry. We're dealing with the syndicate... You can't predict what they'll do..."

"I should have seen this coming after Sharpelli's visit and then the _femme fatale_ act by his _gun moll_ the next day. Della was so right about Sharpelli... I really blew it this time..."

Paul tried to sound a little upbeat and changed the subject. "The roses are a nice touch..." Paul reached into his suit coat pocket and took out the card from the flowers. He tossed the card onto the desk. "I hope you don't mind. I read the card. Looks like the roses were a consolatory gesture..."

Perry buried his forehead in his hands and sighed. "Yes... We quarreled... She was not happy and hung up the phone on me... Damn it, Paul! I'm such an idiot!"

The knock on the front door saved Perry from beating himself down further. Paul got up to answer the door. He let in Tragg, Burger and Agent Coffman.

Coffman looked Paul over right away and extended his hand. "You must be Paul Drake. I'm Russ Coffman – FBI."

Paul shook his hand. "Nice to know you. I wanna help any way I can on this..."

Burger made his way into Della's office and nodded to Perry but turned back to Paul. "That's what we're here to discuss, Paul."

Perry stood up behind Della's desk. "Why don't we all go into my office? I can make more coffee..."

"Let me make the coffee, Perry." Paul walked to the kitchen while the others sat down around the conference table.

Burger got right to the point. "We've got a few things to talk about here, Perry. First of all, I've researched case law on situations where an attorney is forced to defend someone under duress, but there's..."

Perry was deep in his thoughts but came out of his trance and spoke up right away. "Damn the legal system in this matter, Hamilton! Organized crime dictates their own laws! Della's an innocent pawn here and I'll take care of this _my_ way..."

Burger lifted his hands up and waved his hands slowly lowering them back down. "Okay okay okay, Perry. Let's settle down... We came out of our debriefing with a few suggestions on how to handle this. We decided to lay off on rounding up these thugs for now. We figured that our strategy had to change now that we know what Sharpelli's up to. It's all about disrupting this trial by all means. I need to know what _you_ intend to do, Perry."

Paul came back in the room with more coffee. He put the coffee pot down on the table, took out another cigarette and stood back against the balcony doors to light it.

Perry rubbed his forehead. "I plan to be at the arraignment Monday morning. When I meet Sharpelli and his son face-to-face, I'll have a better idea of how I'll handle this..."

Russ Coffman interjected. "Just so you know, we'll still be going after Sharpelli. We just need time. It was suggested by another Agent this morning that we try to stall the proceedings as long as we can. In the meantime, we'll not only track down Della Street, but hopefully we'll find the other witnesses also and put them in protective custody until this is over..."

Perry sat back and lit another cigarette. "That sounds reasonable... But I want Paul in on this. What was decided on that?"

Burger and Tragg exchanged glances. Tragg didn't look happy, but he responded right away. "We'll decide that after the arraignment on Monday morning."

Perry frowned. "One more thing... This case needs to be kept out of the newspapers. If I'm going to that arraignment Monday morning, I want the courtroom closed off to the public. Do you think we can arrange for the arraignment to take place in Judge's Chambers, Hamilton?"

Burger thought it over. "I see what you're getting at, Perry. Let me work on that. If we do something like that – you know – out of the ordinary, I'll have to make arrangements with the Sheriff's Office. If we wanna keep this low-key and confidential, I'll need time to figure something out for that."

Perry felt confident that he got his point across. He knew that Burger, Tragg, and the Feds were going to do their best to help him out.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

LAPD Sergeant Jim Cager was seated in a booth in the dimly lit Menotti's Speakeasy in downtown Venice waiting for Vinny Sharpelli to meet with him. The Saturday afternoon crowd was sparse so Cager had a good view of the front door. He grew more and more nervous every minute that Vinny was late. Cager got the waiter's attention and ordered up another scotch and soda. He looked at his watch again. Vinny was over thirty minutes late.

By the time Cager's drink arrived, he saw Vinny and his men walking into the joint. Vinny's men split away from him and took up positions by the hostess stand and bar.

Vinny slid into the booth across from Cager. "It's getting harder and harder to shake off them lousy cops tailing me all over town... We had to make some... how do you say it... _evasive_ _moves_..." Vinny took a cigar out of the pocket of his fine silk suit coat and lit it.

Cager took a sip of his drink. "That shouldn't be a problem for you any more. I think the guys are backing off now for some reason..."

"So that's why you wanted to meet? To tell me something I already know?"

"Well yeah, for _that_ and something else I found out... That hot-shot attorney – Mason - he got to Roxy's old place on Maryland. They picked up stuff that directly relates Roxy to your new Broadway starlet Angela Totman. Somehow they're tying all of that in with you..."

The waiter came to the booth and took a drink order for Vinny. When the waiter walked away Vinny took a couple of big puffs on his cigar and blew smoke across the booth at Cager. "You're really slipping up, Jimmy... I pay you to take care of things like that for me..."

"I know you do Vinny, but..." Cager paused while the waiter brought Vinny his drink. "Look, give me until Monday morning. I'll have a brief opportunity to look over some of the files on the case. I'll take care of it, Vinny... You've gotta believe me..."

Vinny tossed his drink down in one gulp and stood up. He put his cigar back in his mouth and lightly slapped the side of Cager's face with his hand a few times. "You owe me Jimmy. Thanks for the drink..."

Vinny's men got up and cleared the way for him to walk out of the joint. "When we get to the hotel, get the boys together... It's time for another meeting..."

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Dinner at the ranch house was spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread. Della didn't have much of an appetite, but when she was offered Chianti with the meal, she gladly accepted the offer. The ranch house didn't have fancy wine glasses, so even poured into a small juice glass the wine was delicious.

After dinner, Dice tuned the radio in to a station that was broadcasting a boxing match being held in the Grand Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. Dice sat down in an easy chair near the radio so Della picked up the deck of cards and began shuffling the cards to play solitaire. She'd already finished two Louis L'Amour western novels and thought that a game of solitaire would break up her boredom a bit. Halfway through her first game, she got an idea. Somehow she was going to tempt her captors into a friendly game of poker. It might be a good way to build a rapport with those goons.

She gathered the cards together again and began shuffling the cards like a pro. She got louder and louder and bending the cards into a perfect waterfall form finally caught Dice's attention.

"Hey! Where'd you learn to shuffle cards like that?"

Della stopped shuffling and started setting up her solitaire game. Dice walked over to the table. Fatso came out of the kitchen wiping his hands on a dish towel. Della waited until the men gathered at the table before she answered Dice's question.

"I've been to a few poker rooms. It relieves my boredom..."

Dice couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You play poker?"

Della continued playing her solitaire game. "I was playing five-card draw before I was a teenager. Seven-card stud works better for me now..."

"Well hey, hey, hey, lady... Shuffle them cards up and let's play..."

"Sorry. With a name like 'Dice', you're probably a high-stakes man... I'm not carrying enough cash with me for something like that..."

Dice moved a chair out from the table and anxiously sat down. "We'll keep the stakes low..."

Della looked over to Dice and raised a brow. "Let me see what I've got in my purse." She confidently walked to her bedroom to get her purse. She was hoping that all of the tricks Paul and Perry taught her about high-stakes poker would pay off for her tonight.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Perry and Paul spent the day in Perry's office – mostly pacing around the office and discussing strategies for not only finding Della, but also for defending Antonio Sharpelli. Paul finally convinced Perry that any plan of action on an empty stomach was not very smart. They tossed a coin to see who would leave the office to go find some takeout food. Paul lost the toss, and as usual, Perry paid for the dinner.

It was nearly eleven o'clock when they decided to call it a night. Perry thought that until he shows up for Sharpelli's arraignment on Monday morning, he really couldn't come up with a clear game plan. He completely agreed with trying to stall the trial, but he needed something more.

When he left his office, he drove to Della's apartment to drop off her belongings. He brought her cosmetics bag and the other small bag into her bedroom to put them away. Perry placed her cosmetics bag on the top of her dresser and opened it up. The aroma from the contents of the bag hit him right away. Della's fragrance. He slowly shook his head in sadness wondering where his girl could be. Suddenly her scent was all around him. Stepping back over towards her bed, he laid down and covered his head with her pillow – Della's sweet scent held in the pillow and it's covering. He fell asleep inhaling the heavenly scent of the woman that he loved more than life itself.

**TBC**

Thank you for staying with the story and reviewing.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

It was nearly midnight when Vinny Sharpelli had his close associates gathered together in his hotel suite. Being in Los Angeles, he wasn't on his home turf so his paranoia was growing. Vinny knew that eventually the cops would find him at the hotel since he was certain that he was being followed. He wanted the situation with his son over with right away so he could return to safer, more familiar territory.

He was smoking another fine cigar as he laid out his new plans. He looked at Roxy Marino. "I need you to get out of town, Roxy... They found some of your personal effects in the place where you hid that Totman dame. Now the cops are spouting off about your association with me."

Roxy was apologetic. "Sorry, Vinny. I thought that I had that place cleaned out real good..."

"That's all right, Roxy. But I need you to head back to Vegas until the heat is off here. There's plenty of work in Vegas for a girl like you. You can chose between the Fremont or the Sahara. Either place will be a good fit for you." He turned to Solito. "Get Roxy packed up. You can drive her to Vegas tomorrow afternoon. I want a call from you before you leave..."

Solito nodded. "Right boss..."

Vinny then updated them on his son's murder trial. "With Mason's dame out of sight for a while, he has... ahem... _agreed_ to represent Antonio." He looked directly at Coccini. "I need you around to watch this Mason guy closely starting with that arraignment Monday morning. I don't want him pulling a fast one on me... This lawyer has a reputation for twisting the facts of a case and eventually getting his clients off the hook quickly. That's what I want – a fast trial... But it doesn't mean that I have to trust him..."

Coccini nodded. "No problem... I'll watch him boss..."

"Good! I don't want any more screw ups from any of you... Now get lost... I need some sleep..."

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXPMXODSXOPMXO**

When Fatso tossed his cards face down onto the table, the large pot was left for either Della or Dice. Fatso sat back in his chair to see who was going to rake in the dough. Dice looked back and forth several times between his cards and Della's face.

"You're bluffing... I call that and raise you five." That was the only cash Dice had left on the table.

Della picked through her stack of dollar bills and tossed five into the pot. She raised a brow looking at Dice. He showed the cards in his hand with those already face up on the table.

"There they are... Three deuces..." He began to reach for the pot.

Della put her hand out to stop him. "Not so fast..." She showed her hand one card at a time with others on the table. "One queen, two queens... and one, two, three eights. This house can't get any fuller..."

Della pulled the pot onto her side of the table. Dice slapped his hand down on the table.

"We're not through yet! Deal 'em again..."

Fatso began laughing. "You idiot. You don't have a dime left! What are you gonna bet with?"

Dice glared at Fatso and looked over at the cash Fatso had on the table in front of him. "Loan me ten bucks... I'm good for it – you know I am..."

Fatso collected what was left of his money and put it in his pocket. "Don't be a fool. The lady beat you. You're broke. Give it a rest... I'm going to bed."

Dice turned back to Della. "I ain't finished with you... We'll start again tomorrow!" He stood up and swept his hands across the table scattering the cards on the floor. "Nobody beats me twice in poker!" He walked away from the table and into the bunk room where he slammed the door shut. Della stacked her winnings in front of her on the table then folded the bills neatly to put in her purse. She had plans for those winnings. She thought that maybe she could buy her freedom with a ride to the nearest town.

Fatso stood up at the table and stretched his arms over his head. "You play a mean game of poker, lady. I'm glad that I know when to quit - I only lost forty bucks... You better get to your room. I'm putting the lights out in five minutes."

Della walked to her room. Her strategy to build a friendly relationship with these men was not working out the way that she expected. Apparently luck was on her side when she plays poker she thought. She could get along okay with Fatso, but Dice was another story. She would probably have to let him win at poker next time.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Early Sunday morning Perry woke up in Della's bed. He was tangled up in a blanket and found that he hadn't even taken off his shoes when he fell asleep there the night before. He sat up and ran his fingers through his hair to think about everything that had happened the day before. He felt strange being in Della's bedroom without her there with him.

He decided that he'd go to his apartment and take a shower before he was to meet Paul later in his office. Before he left Della's bedroom, he removed the plastic dry cleaner bag cover from one of his suits in her closet. He then took one of her pillows off of the bed, wrapped it in the plastic, and brought it home with him.

Paul was already in Perry's office reading the Sunday paper when Perry walked in the back door. Paul took his feet off of Perry's desk and put the paper down.

Perry had a weary smile on his face. He was dressed casual for the office wearing a sport coat with his shirt open at the collar and no tie. "Morning, Paul... I didn't expect you here so early..." He unloaded his briefcase on his desk.

Paul stood up and began walking to the kitchen. "I knew you'd be here early, too, so I thought I'd beat you here to make a decent pot of coffee... I have to tell you, Perry, your coffee is not so great." He tried to sound cheerful and came back out of the kitchen with the coffee. "We need to get Della back here soon so there's something to look forward to in this place... I tried to call you after I left here last night. You must have unplugged your phone..."

Perry poured himself a cup of coffee and lit a cigarette. "I didn't go home last night..."

Paul looked a little surprised. "I hope you weren't out looking for trouble..."

"No... I brought Della's things back to her place and fell asleep there..."

"Well I suppose that's okay. Remember – we agreed that we'd work on this together – no running off on our own against these thugs... I have a man that should be calling here any time now, though. He was working on a few things for me overnight."

"I hope he keeps it quiet. Burger won't be happy if he knows we're looking for Sharpelli on our own."

The ringing telephone startled Perry. He answered the phone on the second ring and once again was hoping that it would be Della on the line. "Mason... " Perry frowned. It wasn't Della. He continued talking on the phone. "Yes, he's here. Hold on please..." He handed the phone to Paul. "It's for you..."

Paul took the phone. "Hello? Yeah, Sam... What have you got? Okay... Hold on a second." Paul balanced the phone on his shoulder and took out his pen and notebook. "Okay, I'm ready..."

While Paul talked on the phone and wrote down his notes, Perry looked on anxiously while drinking his coffee. Paul got the information he needed and hung up the phone.

"Sam found out where Sharpelli's staying. He had a meeting there late last night. Sam thinks he might be moving somewhere else soon. How do you want to work this?"

Perry thought it over. "Where is he?"

"The Biltmore. He's checked in under an alias."

Perry put out his cigarette and finished his coffee. "Let's go and pay him a visit!"

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Late Sunday morning the normally quiet Los Angeles FBI office was busy with Agents poring over the intel they had gathered about Vincenzo Sharpelli and his associates. Two secretaries were transcribing reports for the Agents as they compared notes on the illegal activities that Sharpelli was involved in. Dan McGill finished his reports at his desk and turned his chair to talk to Mack DeConcini.

"I'm ready to hit the road back to Vegas. Are you really staying until after the arraignment tomorrow?"

"Yeah. I thought I'd wait until the banks open here and gather those records to bring back to Vegas before I go. Waiting for the records in person will be faster than having them sent in the mail. I'll try to be on the road back to Vegas sometime in the afternoon. Where do you think you'll start the search once you get back to Vegas?"

"I'll start with the Clark County jail. The message I got from the Sheriff last night was that there are at least two inmates there that I'll probably want to talk to. After that, I'll probably be wearing out the leather on my shoes. All I know is that Sharpelli has several mob hangouts between here, San Diego, and Vegas. I'll find out where they're hiding that secretary."

"Okay, chum. Be sure to keep the office updated. I'll be back in Vegas on Tuesday to help you out."

Dan said his goodbyes to the other agents and moved to an outer office area to use a phone in private. He dialed Crystal's phone number and waited anxiously to hear her sweet voice. He listened to the phone ring about ten times before he hung up. He decided that he'd try again from the hotel before he leaves town. His attempt from the hotel an hour later had the same result. There was no answer at Crystal's apartment. He got in his car to begin the long drive back to Las Vegas.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Perry and Paul met Paul's operative, Sam, in the lobby of the Biltmore Hotel. Before Sam left the hotel, he introduced them to the room service manager. Vinny Sharpelli's room service order was almost ready to be delivered to Sharpelli's suite. With the cooperation of the room service manager, Perry and Paul were planning to assist with the delivery.

Sharpelli's bodyguard cautiously opened the door to the suite and stepped back for the table to be rolled into the room. When the bodyguard turned his back to the door, Paul came up behind him and disarmed the bodyguard in one swift move - shoving him off to the side. The bodyguard held his hands up in the air when Paul pointed his gun at him. Perry entered the room and instantly recognized the man as one of the thugs that came to his office with Sharpelli. He told the bodyguard to relax and to let Sharpelli know that he was there to see him. The room service manager ducked out of the room right away and Vinny was summoned into the living room area of the suite.

Vinny was surprised to see Perry and Paul standing in his suite when he came out of the bedroom wearing a robe over his pajamas. The disappointment showed on his face and he waved off his bodyguard. The bodyguard moved to stand by the door where Paul kept an eye on him.

"You have a lot of guts showing up here Mr. Mason." He looked at Paul. "I don't believe I've met your associate..."

"And I don't intend to introduce him. I'm not here to socialize, Mr. Sharpelli. I'm here to negotiate the release of my secretary..."

Sharpelli looked over the room service table and poured himself a cup of coffee. "There's nothing to negotiate, Mr. Mason. You know what I want. When my son is acquitted of murder, your secretary will be reunited with you as soon as my son walks out of the jail..."

"You're making it very difficult for me to even try to help your son. My secretary is a very important part of all of my court cases. Without her assistance in certain duties associated with defending a murder case, my efforts will be hindered." Perry knew that his argument was weak with a man like Sharpelli.

Sharpelli sat down by the room service table. "Then I suggest that you either find assistance somewhere else, or work harder yourself to take care of this."

Perry was getting angry, but tried to hide his frustration with Sharpelli. "How do I even know if you'll keep your end of the bargain? How do I know if my secretary is even _alive_?" Perry nearly choked at the thought.

"She's being taken care of. There's a roof over her head... Comfortable accommodations... She has plenty to eat and drink..." He had a smirk on his face.

"I want to hear that from _her_ – personally..." Perry was glaring at Sharpelli.

Sharpelli looked away from Perry to remove the cover from a plate on the room service table and began seasoning his breakfast food with salt and pepper. "I'm a reasonable man, Mr. Mason. I might arrange for you to speak with her... But not until after my son's Court appearance tomorrow..."

Perry's response was stern. "I don't want you anywhere near that arraignment tomorrow. You attract the wrong kind of attention... This case _does not_ need the negative publicity you'll bring to it..."

Sharpelli thought it over. He swallowed a fork full of food and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Fair enough, Mr. Mason. I'll arrange a meeting with you after court tomorrow... If the arraignment goes through without any fuss, I'll think about letting you talk with your secretary."

Perry nodded to Paul signaling that it was time to leave. "We'll be in touch... And I'll also suggest that if you had anything to do with the disappearance of any witnesses in this case that you reconsider that. Sometimes their eyewitness testimony can be beneficial to the defense." Before Perry and Paul walked out, Paul unloaded the gun that he took off the bodyguard. He put the bullets in his pocket and tossed the gun on the floor as he walked out the door.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

After her late night defeating the boys in the poker game, Della stayed in her bedroom until the later part of the morning. She didn't even hear Fatso banging around the frying pans until after 9am. She took a long shower and brought a clean belted chambray dress out of her suitcase to wear.

Although most of her jewelry was in her cosmetics bag, she found a pair of pearl clip-on earrings in her purse to complement her faux pearl necklace and lovely dress. She sighed as she put the earrings on. Perry had given them to her as a gift when they won a rather difficult murder case out of town in Logan City. Thinking of Perry a lot – especially at night, she had tossed and turned the night before finding it difficult to sleep. She couldn't help but wonder if he was safe from the malevolent Vinny Sharpelli. Della sighed again, smoothed out her dress, and walked out into the kitchen.

Fatso was stirring up batter in the kitchen and Dice was shuffling cards at the dining table. As soon as Dice saw Della he began trying to talk her into a game of poker.

"I hope you brought out some cash, lady. Today we're playing California low-ball. I'll be winning back some of my cash!"

Fatso watched as Della walked over to the stove to pour herself a cup of coffee. "Don't let him talk you into something you're not comfortable with, lady. He's just mad that he lost to a dame!" Fatso laughed – his big belly convulsing beneath his apron.

Dice heard Fatso's remarks. "You think you're really funny, don't you? Well you should mind your own business, Fatso! If you feel so good losing to some lucky broad – who probably cheated – that's your business. But I'll get my dough back one way or another."

Della knew she that was pushing her luck with Dice. She'd never played California low-ball and had only heard of it from a conversation with Paul long ago. She thought that she'd persuade them to find other things to do besides playing poker. "Sorry boys. I'm not feeling up to any poker games today. I think that I'll just read..."

Dice persisted. "Oh no you don't! As soon as Fatso's done cooking up breakfast, them cards will be shuffled and cut!"

Della sat down at the other end of the table across from Dice. She thought that if Dice forced her into another game, she would try her best to lose. Her ultimate goal was only winning her freedom with a ride to the nearest town. "I'll pass on that... Besides, I haven't played California low-ball since I lost a bundle in Gardena a couple of years ago."

Dice looked like he was thinking about making a deal with her. He continued shuffling the cards. "Then it's all set... The game begins right after Fatso finishes the dishes!"

Della just sipped her coffee. "No thanks... Like I said before, I think I'll just relax and read a little bit today..."

Dice slammed the card deck down on the table and stood up. Suddenly he reached across the table grabbing Della's shoulder with one hand and slapped her hard across her face with his other hand. "I said we're playing cards!"

The violent slap to her face caused Della to nearly fall off her chair and it knocked an earring off of her ear. She brought her hands up to her face right away to soothe the stinging feeling it caused. Fatso dropped his kitchen spoon and bolted over to the table to knock Dice off of his feet.

"Leave the lady alone you son-of-a-bitch! If she doesn't wanna play poker, you won't force her to! Now get your ass up off the floor and put them damn cards away!" Fatso walked around the table to Della. "Are you okay, lady?" He picked up her earring from the floor and offered her the towel in his hand.

"I'm okay." She took the towel and nervously dabbed at the spilled coffee on her dress as tears formed in her eyes from the pain. Della fought back those tears thinking that if she showed any fear or weakness, it would only give Dice more satisfaction.

Fatso placed Della's earring in front of her on the table and turned back to Dice who was picking himself up off of the floor. "Get out of here! Take a drive into town and cool off for a while." He tossed him a five-dollar bill. "Get something to eat while you're there. I don't want you back here until you know how to act in front of a lady!"

Dice snatched up the cash from the table and stomped out the door. It was only a moment later that he drove off in the car spinning the wheels in the gravel leaving only a cloud of dust.

**TBC**

Thanks for reading. I appreciate all of your comments!


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

On Sunday afternoon Freddy Solito loaded two large suitcases and a large clothing trunk into his car for Roxy. She stood on the sidewalk in front of her apartment building and looked around the area.

"I'm sure gonna miss this town... But they say that Vegas is the place to be for a successful lounge singer like me..." Roxy waited for Solito to hold the car door open for her to get in.

Solito was already annoyed with Roxy's arrogance and was not looking forward to the long drive ahead with her. He closed the trunk lid on the car and walked directly to the driver's door to get in. "You ain't no singing star yet and I ain't your limo driver, Roxy, so get in. We ain't got all day. The boss wants me to call him before we leave and we're already a few minutes late."

Roxy pouted and got in the car. They drove to a nearby gas station and Solito called Vinny from a pay phone.

"We're ready to hit the road, boss. What else do you want?"

Vinny paused for a moment. "I need you to take a detour. Drive to the shack and call me from town there tomorrow afternoon. I might have a job for you to do before you get to Vegas."

Solito hung up the phone and started the drive back to the shack in the desert.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Perry and Paul spent most of the day on Sunday reading over the police reports of the murder of Marty Cameron. Paul brought out the arrest records of Antonio Sharpelli. He had been arrested for mostly petty crimes in Kansas City and Las Vegas.

Paul laughed as he read the Las Vegas arrest records. "This is like a broken record. Drunk and disorderly four times. Assault five times. All in the past two years. All but one assault charge was dismissed when the victims wouldn't cooperate with the prosecution. The only assault charge that stuck is when he tried to fight with a Sheriff's deputy. He got six months probation for that."

Perry just shook his head. "His record in Kansas City is almost identical. It looks like Vinny rocked the boat to get him out of a felony-level hit and run when he was eighteen, though. He got off on a technicality when the vehicle involved in the incident _disappeared_ from the police impound lot."

After reading enough about the case and Antonio Sharpelli, Perry wanted to meet with him in the jail so he could discuss the arraignment process on Monday morning with him. He called the jail inmate Sergeant to see if his favorite jail contact was working. He wanted to get in and out of the jail without all of the jailers knowing who he was visiting and why. When he got off of the phone, he let Paul know that they were good to go for a confidential visit to the jail.

A sleepy-looking Antonio Sharpelli was brought into a private jail conference room to meet with Perry and Paul. He shuffled in wearing over-sized jail slippers and a wrinkled light blue denim shirt that wasn't tucked into his denim jeans. His cocky attitude presented itself right away to Perry and Paul.

"Whatever you're here for, it better be for a damn good reason... I was taking a nap..." Sharpelli leaned back against the door and yawned.

Perry was frowning and stared at him for a moment. "Have a seat Mr. Sharpelli."

Sharpelli stared back at Perry defiantly but pulled a chair out at the conference table and sat down. "_My_ name is Tony. _Mister_ Sharpelli is my father... Do I know you?"

"My name is Mason... Perry Mason... I've been _persuaded_ by your father to be your attorney."

"Do you have a cigarette for me, _Perry_ Mason?" Tony's request was rather scornful sounding.

Paul was standing closer to Tony so he gave him a cigarette and brought out his lighter to light it for him.

Tony looked Paul over with the same cocky attitude he showed when he walked in the room. "Who are you?"

Perry's patience was running out right away. "He's my associate and you don't need to know who he is right now. I wanted to meet with you before your court appearance tomorrow morning. I've read the police reports and I know about your arrest record. Now I need to know why you killed Marty Cameron..."

Tony leaned back in his chair, put his feet up on the table, and just smoked his cigarette.

Perry gave Tony enough time to respond and with no reply from Tony, he closed up his briefcase and started to walk out of the room. He spoke to Paul. "Apparently he doesn't want to save himself from the gas chamber, so why should I try to defend him? Let's go."

Tony took his feet off the table right away. "Wait just a minute! What's this gas chamber stuff you're saying? They can't keep me in jail after tomorrow... Can they? I thought all of the witnesses were paid off..."

Before he opened the door, Perry paused and turned back to Tony. "Do you really think that your father would have arranged for me to represent you if these murder charges were just going to disappear? Any other attorney from within his, uh, _organization_ would have been brought in instead of me... Good luck, _Tony_..."

Tony jumped out of the chair. "Wait! Just hold on a second here! Nobody told me anything about this gas chamber crap! I thought they'd be letting me out tomorrow after court! If my father hired you – you've gotta help me!" Tony's cocky attitude turned into a desperate plea for help.

Perry stopped at the door. "Then I suggest that you sit down and tell me how and why you murdered Marty Cameron."

With a very worried look on his face, Tony sat back down and told Perry exactly how and why he killed Marty Cameron.

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When he got back to the ranch house late in the afternoon, Dice walked right to the bar and poured himself a drink as soon as he walked in the door. He tossed the drink down his throat in one gulp and poured himself another one.

Fatso watched from the kitchen. "Take it easy on that stuff. I don't wanna have to knock you on your ass again when you act up."

Dice walked over to an easy chair and sat down with his drink. "Where is she?"

Fatso walked over to the dining table and sat down. "She's been in her room all afternoon. You hit her pretty hard. She had a bloody lip."

Della heard the men talking in the living room and walked over to her bedroom door to listen in on their conversation. She still had a cool, wet washcloth held to her cheek.

Dice was laughing while talking to Fatso. "Ha! Serves her right... Before she leaves here, I'll get my dough back..." He quickly changed the subject. "I called Junior from town. He says we're getting company tonight... They should be here around supper time..."

Della perked up a little thinking that maybe one of the visitors might be Perry. She put her ear closer to the door to keep listening.

"Looks like I'll have to make stew for supper. It's the only thing I can keep warm for any extra guests." Fatso got up from the table to walk back into the kitchen area. "Who's visiting – and why?"

Dice sipped his drink. "Solito's stopping by. I don't know why. He's supposed to be heading to Vegas, so this is a little out of his way. We'll know more when he gets here."

When the conversation between Dice and Fatso quieted down, Della sat back on her bed. She was planning to offer Dice all of his poker loss back in exchange for a ride to the nearest town, but now she thought that she'd have to wait until she finds out who was coming along with Solito. An hour later she fixed her hair, put her earrings back on, and walked out of her room to see what the men were up to.

The beef stew cooking in the kitchen smelled delicious. Della found Fatso in the kitchen kneading dough for biscuits. Dice was nowhere to be seen. She walked over to the stove to see if there was any coffee to drink.

"Your stew smells good. May I help you with something?" Della poured herself some coffee.

Fatso looked up from rolling out the biscuit dough. "I don't need any help... But thanks anyway... How's your fat lip?"

"It's okay. Thanks again for your help to defend me." Della tried to smile.

"Dice didn't mean anything by that. But don't expect an apology from him. He's just sore about losing a week's pay."

Della began planting a seed for securing her freedom. "I'll be glad to give it back – and whatever you lost, too."

"That won't be necessary, lady. You won it fair and square."

They both looked towards the front door when they heard a car pulling up in the driveway. Della walked over towards the dining table and sat down with her coffee to wait for the visitors to walk in. She heard two car doors closing. A few moments later, the woman that Della knew as '_Mary Smith_' - aka _Roxy Marino_ walked in.

Roxy laughed when she saw Della sitting at the table. "Ha ha! Well if it isn't Perry Mason's Girl Friday!" Roxy thought that she'd taunt Della. "Ooh, that Perry Mason... That man is somethin' else. So handsome... Very smart... Such a gentleman. When he holds me and kisses me, I just melt... Yeah, that man is somethin' else!" Roxy glanced at Della to see her reaction.

Della looked up at Roxy and just sipped her cup of coffee. She thought that she'd better not say what was really on her mind as she listened to Roxy babble on so she stayed quiet.

Fatso spoke up. "And who the hell are you?"

Roxy turned her attention to Fatso and walked in to the kitchen area to see what Fatso was doing. "I'm Roxy. I work for Vinny... So, who are you supposed to be - Bartolomeo Scappi?"

Della rolled her eyes when she heard Roxy refer to Fatso as Scappi. She slowly lowered her eyes when she remembered Perry talking about the famous Italian chef as he prepared a nice dinner for them a few years ago.

Fatso just looked confused and put his rolling pin down on the kitchen counter. "I work for Vinny, too, and I do all the cooking around here. So keep your smart mouth to yourself and I'll make sure that you're fed..." Fatso moved on to cutting the biscuits out of the dough and placing them on a baking sheet.

Roxy walked back towards the dining table and took her gloves off. She looked around the room as Solito walked in the front door. "This is some kinda dump..." She looked at Solito. "Where's my bedroom?" She glanced over towards Della's room.

Solito gestured towards one of the sofas in the living room. "Make yourself comfortable."

Roxy was not pleased at Solito's suggestion. "Oh no... I ain't stayin' on no couch!" She walked towards Della's room. "Who's room is this?"

"That room is already taken. Like Freddy said, you get the sofa – it opens up into a bed. Or maybe you want to stay out in the barn?" Fatso was serious.

"Like hell I'll stay in this wide open living room. A woman needs her privacy. I'm taking over this room." Roxy walked in to Della's room and Solito quickly followed her.

"He told you that this room's taken. Now go out to the car and get your overnight bag. If we're lucky, we'll only be here tonight and we'll finish our drive tomorrow after I talk to Vinny." Solito grabbed Roxy's arm to direct her away from Della's room.

Roxy pulled her arm away from Solito and turned to glare at Della. "If that's _your_ room, get your stuff out of there. I'm movin' in."

Solito corrected Roxy right away. "She's not moving out, Roxy. Now go get your bag..."

Dice came out of the bunk room to see what all the commotion was about. He leaned on the bar to pour himself a drink.

Roxy wasn't going to be ordered around by Solito. She walked right over to Della. "Get up – go move your stuff out of the room – _now_!"

When Della didn't move, Roxy grabbed Della by the hair. "I said get up and clear out of that room!"

Della's head was pulled to the side as Roxy pulled her hair and Della got out of her chair. When Della grabbed on to Roxy's arms to defend herself, the fight was on.

While the two women struggled, Dice egged them on from the bar. "Look at that! A cat fight! C'mon Roxy – you can take her!"

Della managed to push Roxy away several times before Solito moved in to break up the fight. He finally pulled the screaming Roxy away from Della.

"That's it!" Solito put Roxy in a bear hug and walked her towards the front door. "I told you to go out and get your bag!" He pushed her out the door. "The choice is the sofa or the barn. You touch that dame again and I'll tie you up for the night!"

Dice stopped laughing and swallowed his drink. Della brushed her hair back with her fingers and picked up her overturned chair. Fatso just shook his head and stirred the stew on the stove. The room was quiet and they could still hear Solito outside scolding Roxy. A minute later Solito came back inside alone.

Solito spoke to Dice handing him some cash. "Give Roxy a ride to town. She can get a room at the River Inn for tonight. I'm tired of her crap! After I talk to Vinny tomorrow, we're heading to Vegas to drop her off."

Dice finished his drink and took his car key out of his pocket. As he walked out the door they all heard Roxy shouting and ordering Dice around. "Get my bags in your car. They're too heavy for me to carry... Damn! I think I broke a fingernail..."

Fatso broke the silence in the room. "Supper will be ready in five minutes..."

Della wondered if she'd ever get out of the ranch house.

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The Homicide office of the LAPD was bustling with activity as detectives and police typists were busy talking on phones and completing reports. Lieutenant Tragg was sitting at his desk reviewing a report when Sergeant Brice knocked on his door.

Tragg looked up towards the door. "If that's you, Sergeant Brice, come in here..."

Brice walked in the office and Tragg motioned for him to close the door. When the door was shut, Tragg motioned for Brice to move closer to him.

Tragg whispered to Brice. "Is he in his office yet?"

Brice nodded.

Tragg grinned and nodded back. He spoke louder. "I want the rest of those confidential files on the Cameron murder brought in here from records tonight. That Sharpelli character is being arraigned tomorrow morning in Judge Brandon's courtroom at nine o'clock. The D.A. Is going to review those files with me right before court."

Brice's reply was also loud enough to be heard outside of Tragg's office. "Okay Lieutenant. It'll take me about twenty minutes to go get the files and bring them back here. Will you still be here?"

"I might be here. I just have one call to make. If I'm not here when you get back, you can just leave them on my desk and lock my door when you leave. I'll be here early tomorrow morning."

"Right, Lieutenant. I'll run over to records right now." Brice walked out of Tragg's office. He saw Sergeant Cager in the hallway near Tragg's door. "Hi Jim. You're working late – and on a Sunday, too! I didn't know you were so dedicated!"

Cager continued walking by Brice and just grunted. "I'm always working, Brice. See you later..."

Tragg overheard Cager and Brice's words in the hallway. He quickly picked up his phone and made it sound like he was making a call. He dialed the phone number for the local time and temperature recording from the phone company. He watched Cager walk by his open door and saw Cager's silhouette stopped in the hallway.

Tragg began speaking on the phone loud enough for Cager to hear. "Good evening Agent Coffman. Why is the FBI working so late tonight?" He paused. "I see... Yes... Sergeant Brice is bringing out new information from records to my office tonight... Right... The arraignment is tomorrow... This new discovery will come out at the trial... Okay, Russ... Thanks... Yup – goodnight."

Cager quickly walked away from Tragg's door and went to his office nearby to wait for Sergeant Brice to return to Tragg's office with the reports Cager wanted to take a look at.

After Sergeant Brice left the files on Tragg's desk, he left the building and met Tragg in the parking garage. They got in Tragg's unmarked police car and waited for Cager to act on the information they planted to see if Cager was the dirty cop that they thought he was.

Cager picked open the lock to Tragg's office door and read through the files on Tragg's desk. He wrote down a few notes in his notebook and left the building right away to find a phone booth to call Vinny Sharpelli.

"We've got problems, Vinny. The cops found another witness to Cameron's murder. Apparently there was a maid there serving food and drinks that night. She saw the whole thing. The cops are hiding her in an apartment on Dell Avenue until the trial." He read Vinny all of the notes that he wrote down in his notebook.

Vinny was momentarily silent on the other end of the line. "Police witnesses, Jimmy, are _your_ problem. I suggest that you take care of the problem... And soon!" Vinny hung up the phone and snapped his fingers to get Coccini's attention away from the television program Coccini was watching.

Coccini walked over to Vinny right away. "What now, boss?"

"Jimmy says there's a surprise witness ready to testify at Antonio's trial. Cops are hiding this dame in an apartment on Dell." Vinny wrote the address down on the hotel stationery by the phone. "Get over there and take a look. I told Jimmy to take care of this."

Coccini put on his suit coat over his shoulder holster and left Vinny's hotel suite right away.

Cager hung up the phone and rubbed his forehead. He thought of a plan right away and left the phone booth to go to the Greyhound Bus Depot.

Within the hour, Tragg, Brice and two other Sergeants from the LAPD Internal Affairs Division watched as Cager got out of his 1959 Chevy Corvette in front of the apartment building that they were set up in. They quietly took their places inside apartment number four.

Coccini spotted three unmarked police cars parked near the apartment building. He also watched as Cager parked his car and walked into the apartment building.

Tragg gave last minute instructions to the young female Police Department records clerk posing as their phony police witness. "You know what we want you to do. We don't expect trouble so you'll be safe. We'll be right behind you." She nodded confidently.

Cager knocked on the apartment door and the young lady opened the door. Cager looked her over.

"Miss Severson? I'm Sergeant Cager – LAPD Homicide Unit." He showed the woman his badge.

She moved away from the door and invited him in to the apartment. "Is there something wrong, Sergeant?"

"I'm afraid there is, Ma'am. I'm here to take you to the bus depot. There's been a change of plans." He brought out a one-way bus ticket to Mexico in her name and handed it to her. "My orders are to get you out of town for a while. We'll bring you back in time for the murder trial. I'm sorry that this is so sudden. We need to leave now, so if you'll just get your things together quickly..."

Lieutenant Tragg walked out of the bedroom area of the apartment. Cager heard someone approaching and turned towards him.

"Oh! Lieutenant... Uh, I didn't expect to see you here... I, uh, just thought I'd check up on Miss Severson here..." Cager began to sweat when he saw the other cops walk into the room behind Tragg.

Tragg was direct in his reply to Cager as he removed Cager's gun from the holster on his belt. "I knew you were dirty the moment you drove up in that new Corvette... A Corvette on a policeman's salary? Ha! You make me sick! You've tarnished the LAPD badge! There never was another Police witness being hidden here. We planted those files on my desk to see who's been feeding information to the mob." Tragg turned to Brice. "Go ahead and book 'em." He then turned to the Internal Affairs Sergeants. "The Feds will have first crack at him. If there's anything left after that, he'll be all yours..."

Brice put the handcuffs on Cager extra tight before leading him out the door. The cops loaded the handcuffed Sergeant Cager into one of the unmarked police cars outside. Coccini watched them drive away from the area before he started his car and drove back to Vinny's hotel suite to bring Vinny the news.

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When Dice returned to the ranch house he found it too peaceful for his liking. Fatso was on a sofa listening to '_Have Gun Will Travel'_ on a radio program and Della was almost finished with her third Louis L'Amour paperback novel. Solito was already in the bunk room sleeping.

Dice poured himself a drink and sat down at the dining table. He tried to start a conversation with Della who was seated nearby in an easy chair.

"How much longer are you going to read that book?"

Della continued to ignore Dice and turned another page in the book.

Dice was persistent. "Okay, look, I'm sorry I got so angry. I don't usually go around hitting women... How about if we play some gin rummy instead of poker? Just a friendly game of gin rummy..."

Della thought it over – hoping that if she played gin rummy for a while, she could soften up Dice. She was thinking that if she let him win, he'd be in a better mood. She could then find an opportunity to give him back all of his money in exchange for the ride to town. She lowered the book onto her lap and looked over to him.

"I might be interested in gin rummy. But not for money. Just for points. I'm pretty tired so I won't last too long."

Dice stood up right away and took the deck of cards out of the drawer in the bar. "Okay. When you get too sleepy, we'll quit." Dice poured himself another drink and started shuffling the cards.

An hour into the card game Dice noticed that Della was making mistakes which were costing her points. "Hey, lady. That wasn't so smart to discard that jack..."

Since Fatso had gone to the bunk room after listening to his radio show, Della thought she'd make her proposal to Dice.

"If we were playing for money, you'd be a little ahead of me... How would you like to get all of your money back right now?"

Dice looked away from the cards in his hand. "What are you thinking – an all-or-nothing hand?"

"No... I'll give you every dime in my purse if you'll just drive me to the nearest town and let me go. You can just tell your boss that I caused a scene and got the attention of a cop and you had to let me get away. You can just make something up... And I'll give you one hundred ninety-five bucks. That's all I have..." She looked him in the eye and waited for his reply.

He thought it over for a moment and put his cards down on the table. "A hundred ninety-five, huh?"

Della crossed her fingers under the table. Dice looked like he might just take the deal.

Then Dice shook his head. "No... It would never work... For one thing, I've never seen a cop in town. There's maybe a Sheriff's car that drives through once in a while. And nobody would ever believe that story that you just got away from me. Besides, when this job is over, I'll have over five hundred bucks coming to me... No, lady... I ain't taking you to town..."

Della decided to sweeten the pot. "Listen... I have thousands of dollars in my savings account in Los Angeles. Name your price. I'll have the money wired to you right away..."

"I can't do it lady... I just can't do it."

Della frowned. "If you change your mind, just let me know in the morning." She excused herself from the game and went to her room. She'd have to think of some other way to get away from these men.

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Perry brought a book out of the office law library and stuffed it into his briefcase. It was nearly ten o'clock on Sunday night and he decided to go home and try to get some rest before the arraignment in the morning. Paul had left the office hours ago and Perry promised that he'd only be spending the night reading case law in preparation for the Sharpelli case.

When he walked in his apartment door, he left his briefcase by his easy chair in the living room and went to hang up his sport coat. After pouring himself a brandy, he kicked off his shoes, lit a cigarette, and sat down to read his law book.

Perry read through part of a case in the book and was having a hard time trying to concentrate on what he was reading. His thoughts always strayed to wondering where Della could be and if she was okay.

He missed his girl. He missed her smile. He missed the way she stands in front of his desk – her arms folded across her chest – one leg posed in front of the other. He missed her being next to him – sitting in her chair by his desk - her pencil always ready to record important information. He missed her just sitting on his desk discussing the events of the day. He missed her cuddling with him in front of a fireplace on chilly nights. He missed dining and dancing with her. He missed her laughter and charm. Then it really hit him hard when he couldn't remember the last time that he'd told her that he loved her. He rubbed his forehead and cursed himself for putting Della in danger.

He put the law book down and got up to walk over to his bookcase. He found the photo album that Della had put together for him - giving it to him on his last birthday. Perry sat back down in his easy chair and began paging through the photo album. There were photos of him and Della relaxing on the beach in Malibu; dancing at the weddings of friends; salmon fishing near Westport Washington; building a snowman in the mountains near Lake Tahoe. All happy times. All good times. Then he saw the photo of them embracing in front of the fountain in the courtyard of the Vista Del Mar. They would be there right now if only... He sighed and hung his head down. He really missed his girl.

**TBC**

Thank you for reading. Your comments are appreciated.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

The sun was barely coming up on Monday morning in Las Vegas as Dan McGill finished his five-mile run along the Vegas strip. He walked in to his apartment and wiped his forehead with a towel before putting bread in the toaster to start his breakfast. His plan was to eat a quick breakfast, shower, and try to call Crystal before he left for his office. He still hadn't talked with his girl since his first morning in Los Angeles which, to him, seemed like weeks ago.

In Salt Lake City that morning, Crystal Davis was locking her apartment door ready to leave for work. She was dressed in her crisp white nurse's dress taking the key out of the lock when a neighbor greeted her in the hallway.

"Good morning, Miss Davis. It looks like you're rushing off to work."

Crystal smiled back at her elderly neighbor lady and put her apartment door key in her purse. "Good morning Mrs. Reed! Yes, I have to work today. Another busy Monday ahead of me!"

They began walking away from Crystal's door still conversing about the weather when Crystal thought that she heard her phone ringing inside her apartment. "Oh! I think that's my phone ringing..." Hoping that any call at that hour would be from Dan, she quickly walked back to the door and opened her purse to bring out her key. The phone continued to ring as Crystal fumbled with her key to open the lock. She finally opened the door and ran inside directly to her phone.

Out of breath from rushing back into the apartment, she picked up the phone. "Hello?" There was silence on the line. "Hello?" She only heard a dial tone so she tapped on the phone switch hook. "Hello?" Realizing that she had probably missed the call, she just hung up the phone, shrugged her shoulders and left for work again.

Dan McGill disconnected his phone call to Crystal's apartment after ten rings. He sighed and got back on the phone and dialed his phone for an operator.

"I need long distance information please. I need a phone number for St. Mark's Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah." Dan got the phone number he needed and called the hospital right away. His call was transferred from the main switchboard and answered by another nurse in Crystal's work area. She told Dan that Crystal was not at work yet, but was expected to be in soon.

Dan was already a little late to start his day, so he just left a message. "Please tell Crystal that I'm just calling to say 'Hi'. I'm back in Las Vegas, but I don't know how long I'll be here. I'll call her again soon..."

The message was waiting for Crystal when she arrived at her nurse's station at St. Mark's Hospital. She smiled after reading the note, then folded it and put it away in her purse. Crystal really missed seeing Dan in person and looked forward to talking to him on the phone.

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Perry woke up with a sudden jolt. Right away he looked over at the alarm clock beside his bed. It was only seven o'clock but once again he'd had a restless night's sleep. The pillow that he brought home from Della's bed was pulled over his head to inhale what was left of her fragrance. He wasn't sure what caused him to wake up so suddenly, but what ever it was – a dream or a nightmare – his heart was racing and his mind was busy processing his thoughts.

The cause of Perry's unrest came to him unexpectedly later as he walked in the back door to his office. He remembered coming up with an idea for stalling the murder trial when he was tossing and turning the night before. It would take the cooperation of Hamilton Burger's office and a lot of secrecy, but he thought he had a shot to pull it off. After starting a pot of coffee to brew, he called Burger right away to set up a meeting with him right after the arraignment for Antonio Sharpelli.

Perry's call to Burger's office was transferred to Burger right away. "Good morning Hamilton. Are there any updates before the arraignment this morning?"

Burger was glad that Perry was calling. "As a matter of fact, I _do_ have an update for you. We originally set up the arraignment in Judge Brandon's courtroom. At least that's what we put on the court calendar. But we'll be meeting in Judge Reynolds' courtroom instead. I'll explain more if we can meet a few minutes before nine o'clock."

"That's fine. And may I meet with you privately – uh, _confidentially_ - somewhere right after the arraignment? You have my word that the meeting won't compromise any part of the case."

Burger paused. "Ha! Ordinarily, Perry, I'd say that your word wouldn't mean a thing on a murder case like this... But if you say that this won't harm the case, I'll meet with you. I'd just like Lieutenant Tragg on my side as a witness."

"That's fine, Hamilton. And I'll bring Paul Drake along, too."

They were finished with their call when Paul Drake knocked on Perry's back door. Perry shouted for Paul to enter while he walked to the kitchen to bring out the coffee. They still had an hour before the arraignment.

Perry poured two cups of coffee. "I've arranged to meet with Burger after the arraignment this morning. I want you there. I'm going to make a suggestion to him for stalling this trial. And I'll need your help..."

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At twenty minutes to nine on Monday morning Junior Coccini stood in front of a mirror in a men's room in the courthouse. He adjusted the tie on his borrowed bailiff's uniform and noticed that the uniform shirt was a little tight. He silently cursed the jailer on Vinny's payroll who provided the uniform as he walked out into the hallway. At the end of the hallway he found a pay phone to call Vinny to find out where Antonio Sharpelli was going to be arraigned. Vinny's contact in the D.A.'s office told Vinny that there was a last-minute change in courtrooms for the arraignment. Coccini hung up the phone and proceeded to Judge Reynolds' courtroom.

Burger was already in the courtroom at the prosecutor's table when Perry and Paul walked in. Paul sat down in the empty gallery right away. Perry walked through the bar gate but noticed a bailiff already standing in the back corner of the courtroom. He made a surreptitious glance at the bailiff wondering why a bailiff was already present for the arraignment. Right away Perry noticed that the bailiff was wearing shiny black wing-tip shoes with his tan-colored uniform. As far as Perry knew, the bailiffs in Los Angeles County courtrooms only wore plain dark brown oxford shoes. The bailiff's presence was unusual so Perry was cautious not to say anything about why he wanted to meet Burger privately later on. He approached Burger to greet him and shake his hand making sure that their greeting was formal for the bailiff to see. "Good morning, Mr. Burger. I'm here for the arraignment of Antonio Sharpelli. I suspect that you are here for the same reason?"

The puzzled look on Burger's face was met by a nod from Perry towards the bailiff. Burger shook Perry's hand and looked towards the bailiff. Right away he understood Perry's concern since he, too, found the bailiff's presence unusual so he also kept his conversation official. "Yes, Mr. Mason. I'm glad that you got the message about the courtroom change. The defendant will be brought in any minute now if you'd like to meet with him before Judge Reynolds calls us to order. This is the Judge's only arraignment this morning..."

Perry walked to the defense table and opened his brief case to write a note for Burger. He walked back to Burger when he finished. "Here is another copy of the motion I'll make before pre-trial."

Burger read Perry's note and nodded. "Thank you Mr. Mason." Burger buried the note in his file.

Moments after Antonio Sharpelli was brought into the Courtroom and seated at the defense table, Judge Reynolds came out of Chambers and took the bench. The Court reporter and the Court clerk came in with him to call the Court to order.

"The Court calls for all persons involved with the State of California versus Antonio Sharpelli – please step forward." The jailer brought the shackled Defendant Antonio Sharpelli forward towards the Bench.

Burger spoke up right away. "District Attorney Hamilton Burger for the State your Honor." He approached the bench with a copy of the Complaint.

Judge Reynolds took a moment to read the Complaint and addressed Sharpelli. "Mister Sharpelli, you're charged with Murder in the First Degree and other offenses including attempted murder. You've been advised of your rights. How do you plead?"

Sharpelli nervously looked to Perry. Perry stepped forward. "Your Honor, Perry Mason for the Defendant in a limited-scope capacity. The Defendant pleads not guilty to the charges."

Judge Reynolds wrote down some notes on the case and then addressed Burger and Perry. "It is so noted, Mr. Mason... Is there a reason for the limited-scope representation?"

"There is Your Honor... It's a matter of details in the retainer that are still being worked out." Perry looked over to Burger.

"The State is aware of the limited-scope representation, Your Honor. Further, as noted on the Complaint, the State requests no bail for the Defendant." Burger looked towards Perry.

Perry nodded back to Burger and turned to address the Judge. "The Defendant understands that bail is not an option for these charges and the other circumstances listed in the Complaint. And per his Constitutional rights, he only requests a fair and speedy trial."

"So noted, Mr. Mason..." The Judge concluded the arraignment and set a date for a preliminary hearing later in the week beginning on Wednesday.

Sharpelli was led from the Courtroom as Perry picked up his briefcase at the defense table. Perry noticed right away that the bailiff that had been standing in the rear of the courtroom was no longer present. As Burger gathered his file together, Perry spoke to him on his way towards the bar gate.

"Per my note, I'm assuming I'll see you in my office soon? We'll use my law library – there's no way anyone can listen in to any conversation there..."

Burger agreed to the meeting and they all left the courtroom.

It was ten o'clock when Coccini got back to Vinny Sharpelli's hotel room. Coccini updated Vinny right away on his son's arraignment.

"Everything looked fine to me, boss. Mr. Mason was in court and spoke to the Judge. Antonio will be back in court on Wednesday and as much as I could hear from the conversation, Mr. Mason will be there to represent Antonio."

Vinny continued to smoke his cigar. "Good work. We'll be paying Mr. Mason a visit this afternoon after I hear from Solito..."

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The ranch house was fairly quiet after Fatso finished cleaning up the breakfast dishes Monday morning. Dice was sitting on a couch listening to the radio and Della began reading her fourth Louis L'Amour novel. After taking a shower, Solito came out of the bunk room and strapped on his gun in his shoulder holster.

"I'm going to town to give Vinny a call and pick up Roxy. What do you need in town, Fatso?"

Fatso walked into the living room and handed Solito a grocery list. "I just need a few things. And why don't you bring this dame a few magazines? She can only read so many Louis L'Amour books..."

Della smiled at Fatso then looked to Solito. "A magazine or newspaper would really be nice, thank you..."

Solito nodded to Della before he walked out the door, then turned back towards the group. "Maybe I should bring Dice a copy of Poker Digest." Dice didn't find his sarcasm very funny.

When Solito got to Roxy's hotel room she was still in bed sleeping. He roused her out of bed. "It's almost eleven o'clock. Get up! I need to call Vinny to find out what he wants us here for, then we're heading back to the shack."

"Alright, alright! The sooner I get to Vegas the better..."

"Just behave yourself when we get back to the ranch, too. If Vinny hears that you're fighting with that lawyer's dame, he won't be happy. Now get going..."

While Roxy used the bathroom to dress and clean up, Solito called Vinny in Los Angeles. Vinny's instructions to Solito were clear – he was to bring Della to town so that he could arrange for Perry to speak with her on the phone. Vinny wanted Della in town by two o'clock and he would be in Perry's office to receive that phone call.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Dan McGill spent his whole morning in the Clark County jail in Las Vegas talking individually to inmates with mob connections. He learned that Vinny Sharpelli and his associates had several hideouts between Las Vegas and Los Angeles. When he got back to his office around noon, he opened his case file and brought out a road map to plan his route to search for these gang hideouts.

In looking through the case file on the Kansas City Crime Family, Dan sorted through several local connections. One connection that really stood out was a Las Vegas casino owner, Benny Binion. Binion was affiliated with the Chicago Outfit and had old associations with mob activity in Dallas among other places. Binion owned a ranch near Pahrump, Nevada. Dan looked at the map and found a dot on the map for the tiny town of Pahrump near the California/Nevada border. With a colored pencil, Dan marked Pahrump as his first stop.

Dan used the map and case file to plot out two more stops on the map. He found more Binion hideouts along the California/Nevada borders near Sandy Valley and one more along the Arizona/Nevada border near Bullhead City, Arizona. He had all of the towns marked on his map and was anxious to leave for these places. Dan wanted to get this case against Vinny Sharpelli over with soon so he could return to his normal duties in Salt Lake City.

After calling the FBI office in Los Angeles, Dan was disappointed to find out that Mack DeConcini still hadn't left LA for Las Vegas. Mack wasn't expected to be back to Las Vegas until the next day. That was frustrating for Dan who wanted to find Perry Mason's secretary fast so that Vinny Sharpelli would be put away. Dan told Mack that he would be leaving for Pahrump soon, and he agreed to either take along another Agent from Las Vegas or use local law enforcement resources for assistance in checking the mob hideouts.

After a light lunch at his desk, Dan took time to try and call Crystal again. He was relieved when the nurse that answered his call at Crystal's duty station told him that she would get Crystal to the phone right away.

"It's good to hear from you, Dan. I've been worried about you..." Crystal sat down at the nurse's station desk.

Dan was thrilled to finally hear her sweet voice and nervously tapped his pencil on his desktop. "I'm glad that I finally got a hold of you... I tried to call your apartment this morning before I left that message at the hospital. I hope that you don't mind that I had to try and track you down like that..."

"I'm just glad that I'm dating an FBI man that knows how to find his girl. Is your case going well now that you're back from LA?"

"I think I'm making progress. I wish I could tell you more so that you'd understand what I'm up against here... But for now, I can let you know this – I'll be on the road for the rest of today and probably some of tomorrow, but if I get a chance, I'll call you again soon."

Crystal's phone call was interrupted by another nurse who told her that one of her patients needed her. Regretfully, Crystal had to end the call. "I need to go, Dan. But it's so nice to hear your voice... I miss you..."

"I miss you, too, babe. I'll call again soon when we have more time..." Dan hung up the phone and sighed. The sooner that he could head for Pahrump during daylight hours, the better.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

When Burger heard Perry's plan for Antonio Sharpelli's Court trial he just shook his head. "I hope you're kidding, Perry... I mean, how can this work without jeopardizing the case?"

The meeting in Perry's law library had started just before noon. Lieutenant Tragg and Paul Drake were the only others in the meeting with Burger and Perry. Perry rubbed his forehead and continued laying out the details for his plan to delay the trial until they could find Della and free her from Vinny Sharpelli's grip.

"It won't hurt your case at all, Hamilton. Just hear me out... First you'll need to get a continuance for any preliminary hearing. Or let's just figure out a way to skip the hearing entirely and go right to a jury trial. With this plan, we can stall while picking a jury. And with Paul's help, we'll make Vinny think that this is real..."

Burger was still confused. "Let me get this straight, Perry. We're going to _stage_ a trial – like putting on some sort of theatrical production?"

Perry nodded enthusiastically. "Right. Paul has an operative that moonlights as a stage manager at the Pasadena Playhouse. He's connected with actors and others that can pull this off in secrecy. We can work out the logistics of this later, but for now, I need to convince Vinny Sharpelli that I'm working on his son's defense so no further harm comes to Della."

"I still don't see how this can be done without legally jeopardizing the case... We're already on record for the arraignment..."

"And as far as being on record as your case moves along, we won't be officially in front of any court personnel. We can stage this with actors as Judge and jury – jeez, Hamilton – we can even use an actor as a prosecutor so you won't have anything to do with any _legal_ proceedings..."

Tragg added his doubts. "Just how can you pull this off and keep Antonio Sharpelli secure? The Sheriff's Office will never cooperate with anything like this. There's already been an escape attempt..."

"We'll work that out soon enough. Right now I need your help and I'll take your suggestions..." Perry looked back and forth between Burger and Tragg.

The meeting was interrupted when Gertie knocked on the door. Perry invited her in.

"Mr. Mason, there's an important call for you... It's Vincenzo Sharpelli and he wants to talk to you right away..."

Perry stood up right away to take the phone call at Della's desk. He looked to the others back in the law library. "Don't leave yet. This meeting's not over yet..."

Gertie put the call through to Perry. "Mason speaking..."

Vinny got right to the point of his call. "I've arranged to let you speak with your secretary on the phone. I'll be in your office at two o'clock for that call. You see, Mr. Mason, I told you that I'd keep my word when you work on my son's defense... See you around two."

Perry returned to the law library to share the news with the others. "Vinny's coming here at two o'clock. He says that he's arranged for me to talk to Della over the phone..."

Paul spoke up right away. "If the call is coming in to your office, Perry, we should trace that call..." He looked to Tragg. "Can we get your help with that, Lieutenant? All of my equipment is being used on another case out of town right now and we can't rely on the phone company."

Tragg held up his hand and went to use the phone on Della's desk. After dialing a number, he waited on the line. "This is Lieutenant Tragg. Put Sergeant Jurgenson on the line." Tragg came back in the law library after his phone call.

"We have equipment on the way right now to trace that call. Jurgenson's an expert on that sort of work – even better than the phone company can do..."

Perry began pacing in the room and nervously ran his fingers through his hair. "Great. Now we'll have to figure out how to keep Vinny away from our phone tracing equipment while he's here."

Paul stepped up right away. "We can get that all set up in the back of the kitchen area near the telephone junction box. I'll get to work on that right now – it's almost one o'clock!"

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

After lunch at the ranch house, Della was permitted to sit on the front porch while Fatso was outside hanging his washed clothing out to dry in the sun. Once again Della offered to help, but Fatso turned her down. The afternoon sun and light breeze felt good to Della. She looked around the front of the house and thought about any way that she could leave the house and get to a highway to look for help. All she could see however, was a lot of desert ground.

Solito got back to the ranch with Roxy while Della was still enjoying the fresh air out on the front porch. Roxy was walking in to the house but stopped by Della's chair and tossed her a bag with several magazines.

"If I would have known these were gonna be for you, I would have picked out copies of 'Field & Stream' or 'Popular Mechanics'. I suggest that you read 'Glamour Magazine' first so I can have it when you're finished..."

After Roxy got in the house Della placed the magazines on her lap to look through the contents of the bag. Solito walked up to her before she could look over the magazines.

"Get inside and get yourself fixed up, lady. I gotta take you to town right away. It seems that my boss wants you to talk on the phone to your boss in his office at two o'clock..."

Della's ride to town was dusty and bumpy. She was seated on the back seat in Solito's car with Dice riding next to her. They covered her head with a pillow case, but told her that she'd be able to take it off when they arrived in town. Thinking that they would keep her from seeing where she was, Della looked at her watch when they left the ranch so she could see how many minutes the ride to town would take.

When the car stopped at a gas station, Dice told Della to take the pillow case off of her head. She looked at her watch right away. The ride from the ranch took almost forty minutes. She looked around and blinked her eyes to adjust them to the sunlight. Looking for other clues to where she was, Della spotted a small sign in the window of the gas station - 'Welcome to Bullhead City Arizona – Southern Gateway to Lake Mohave'. Now she knew what town the ranch house was near. She also knew that Bullhead City was along the Colorado River south of Las Vegas on the Arizona/Nevada border. She had to think of a way to get that information to Perry.

Solito opened her car door and assisted her out of the back seat. He pointed to a nearby phone booth outside of the gas station building.

"In five minutes we're gonna use that pay phone to call your boss. But there are a few rules you need to know first. Keep the conversation to how nice you're being treated and we won't cut off the call. You understand me?"

Della nodded nervously. "Yes... I understand..."

In Perry's office shortly before two o'clock, Vinny and two of his bodyguards walked around the office checking the other rooms to ensure that Perry was alone. Finding nobody else in the office except for Gertie at her receptionist desk, Vinny sat down with Perry at the conference table and laid out the ground rules for the call.

"Remember - the purpose of this call is just a goodwill gesture by me to show you that your secretary is alive and well. When the call comes through I want you to put it on the speaker phone. If I hear anything that sounds out of the ordinary, I'll cut you off right away. Are we clear, Mr. Mason?"

Perry nodded. "We're clear..." He was glad that Paul and Tragg were able to hide in the back of the kitchen area without being detected by Sharpelli's goons. His goal was to keep talking to Della long enough for them to trace the call.

At two o'clock on the dot, Perry's main office phone line rang. Perry put the call on the speaker phone and heard Solito on the other end of the line.

"Mason? Here's your secretary..."

At the gas station pay phone in Bullhead City Arizona, Solito handed the phone to Della after he heard Perry on the line.

Della's normally calm voice was trembling. "P-P-Perry?"

**TBC**

Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter. For over a week, I was experiencing 'TCOT Missing Flash Drive' where all of these chapters are stored for editing... Thanks for staying with the story! All comments are appreciated.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

Perry swallowed hard upon hearing Della's frail voice on the phone and used a lot of restraint to hide his own emotions. He wanted to keep Della calm and focused on the conversation. This phone call just had to last long enough to be traced.

"I'm here, Della... Are you alright? Are you hurt or anything?" Just saying her name on the phone made Perry feel better.

After hearing Perry's soothing voice, Della regained her composure right away. "I'm okay, Mr. Mason... I'm okay..."

"As you can probably guess, Della, we're in a sort of a situation here..." Perry wanted to keep her on the line as long as possible so he thought he'd start by explaining what they were up against. "As part of an agreement with Mr. Sharpelli, he's allowed for me to speak with you so I can be assured that you're safe and well..."

Della hesitated with her reply. "I see... Well I wish someone would explain why I can't leave the _ranch house _that I'm staying in..."

Perry caught the hint from Della about the ranch house but Vinny gave Perry a loud warning which Della clearly heard. "Watch what you say, Mason!"

With a nod towards Vinny, Perry responded to Della. "I'll, uh, try to explain... I have you on speaker phone with Mr. Sharpelli next to me..."

Worried that Perry was in immediate danger or under duress, Della replied carefully. "I understand Mr. Mason..." She bit her lower lip waiting for him to give her more information.

Perry spoke calmly. "I'm involved with the defense of Mr. Sharpelli's son... So until this murder trial is concluded favorably for his son, I'm afraid that you'll be Mr. Sharpelli's - uh – _guest_ for the time being. But right now, I need to know that you're being treated okay..."

Solito was still standing next to Della trying to keep his ear close to the phone so he could hear the conversation. Waiting for her reply about her treatment, he showed Della a fixed smile. Della glanced at him for a moment and then turned her attention back to the phone call.

"Well it's not as comfortable as being in my own home... But I've got books and magazines to read... There's a deck of cards and a radio. I can listen to music on the K-E-N-O radio station..."

Solito put his hand on the phone and gave Della a verbal warning. "Remember my rules, lady. The rules!" Della stopped talking and wondered how she could give Perry another clue to her location.

Perry heard Solito in the background so he cut in. "I hope you're being fed and getting rest..."

Della took this as an opportunity to throw Perry another hint. "Well it's not exactly an all-you-can-eat buffet, but it's _close_..." She wanted to get in another hint without a warning from Solito so she put her hand to her mouth and became excited. "Oh my gosh! Speaking of food, Mr. Mason, my fish need to be fed! I forgot all about the fish in my aquarium!"

Perry knew right away that Della was up to something so he played along. "I can take care of that for you... Is there something that I need to know to feed them?" Perry gave Vinny a concerned look.

Della continued – almost ranting about feeding her fish. "Good heavens! How could I forget about my fish? Especially the _Bullhead_! You've just got to spare _forty minutes_ to get to my place and take care of my precious Bullhead! Oh, my poor fish!"

Vinny had heard enough. "Alright! That's enough. Say your goodbyes – you've heard that she's fine and that you need to go and feed her fish!"

Della stopped talking but hoped that Perry would figure out her clues. Perry knew that his time was up so he calmly began wrapping up the call.

"I guess that's all we can say for now, Miss Street. I'll take care of your fish – and you just hang in there. I'll take care of this, uh, _situation_ as soon as possible. I'll ask Mr. Sharpelli if I can speak with you again soon..."

Vinny reached over to the phone and disconnected the call before Perry or Della could say anything more. Perry hid his anger from Vinny and just sat back in his chair at the table. Vinny stood up.

"You've had your phone call, Mr. Mason. Now I think that it's time that we talk about your plans to defend my son in Court. What's the next step?"

Perry rubbed his forehead. "The next phase could be a preliminary hearing but my strategy will be to skip that and ask for a jury trial to begin as soon as possible. I'll have to work that out with the District Attorney. I'll know more about that tomorrow."

Vinny motioned to his bodyguards that he was ready to leave. "I'll be in touch tomorrow afternoon..." Vinny and his men left Perry's office.

Back in Bullhead City, Della was escorted back to Solito's car for the return trip to the ranch house. She was thrilled to hear that Perry was okay and just knew that he was working on a way to end this mess.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Dan McGill stopped his FBI motor pool car in front of a small market in what he concluded was the small town of Pahrump. The sixty-mile drive took him ninety minutes because the main route from Las Vegas was mostly unpaved roadway. He was hoping that there would be someone in the market that could give him directions to the ranch he was searching for. Dan decided to portray himself as a real estate prospector suspecting that anyone in this town – if that's what you would call it – would probably be on the mob payroll. He found a clerk reading a book behind the checkout counter inside the market.

"Howdy. I'm hoping that you can give me directions to these two ranches in the area. I'm involved in real estate and it's rumored that these two places are ripe for a buyout." Dan showed the store clerk a note paper with 'Mountain View' and 'Lucky Horseshoe' written on it.

The clerk looked over the note. "Lucky Horseshoe is about twenty miles south of here by way of Homestead Road – that's a dirt trail that runs just back of the store here. And Mountain View is ten miles west of here by way of Shoshone Road." He looked out the window of the store to look at Dan's car. "If that's your car out there, you won't make it to Mountain View in that. You'll need a jeep or something more rugged."

Dan nodded. "That's good to know, thanks. Is there a pay phone around here?"

The store clerk pointed to a phone booth in the corner. "Help yourself – it's new. The first and only phone around for miles."

Because he had no local cops for support, Dan used the phone to call back to the Las Vegas FBI office to let them know where he was. He learned that Mack DeConcini was still in Los Angeles so he left a message for the Agent-in-charge with his plans. After the call, Dan headed out for the Lucky Horseshoe ranch.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

After making sure that Vinny and his goons left Perry's office and the Brent Building, Lieutenant Tragg returned to Perry's office to meet in the law library. Perry had written down notes from his phone conversation with Della and he was smoking a cigarette studying the notes with Paul when Tragg returned.

Perry muttered to himself. "Della is _never_ just '_okay'_... She's always '_just fine_' no matter what. I can tell by her voice that she's worried... If they harm one hair on her head, I'll..." He paused and rubbed his forehead. "Wait a second here... Paul, did you find out anything about K-E-N-O radio?"

"Margo's gonna be calling me about that here any minute now. To me, it sounds like a radio station out of Las Vegas..."

"That would tie in with her remark about an all-you-can-eat buffet. They're all over the place in Vegas..."

Tragg spoke up about the results of tracing the phone call. "Las Vegas area makes sense. It's too bad the call didn't last a little bit longer so we could get more than just the three possible telephone area codes... One of the area codes matches the Las Vegas area..."

Perry crushed out his cigarette. "I wonder what she meant about feeding her fish? A bullhead... I remember her telling me that she caught a bullhead fishing with her brother when she was a kid. She said she was stung by the damn thing..." Perry rubbed his forehead again and looked at Tragg. "What did you hear from your FBI associates? Do they have any leads on _anything_?"

"Agent Coffman is following leads on the missing witness – Angela Totman. And another Agent still here in town from Las Vegas is trying to track down Roxy Marino. Last I heard, she might have left town..."

Perry stood up and began pacing. He looked to Paul. "With the Feds only running around after Vinny and his associates, it looks like we're on our own to try and find Della. You've got a few connections in Vegas, Paul. Why don't we give them a call so they can give us a hand looking for Della?"

Tragg cautioned Perry not to interfere with the Feds. "Hold on a minute, Perry. Don't impede on any part of the FBI's investigation of this case. They've got several men assigned to this case all over the area and if you..."

Perry cut him off right away. "They've got men assigned to this case, Lieutenant, but they're not making any _progress_! It took Paul and his men less than six hours to find Vinny Sharpelli here in town – something the Feds were working on for _days_! They're taking their sweet time gathering just the facts that will look good on paper for a conviction in Federal Court – meanwhile, Della is being held in some ranch house - who knows where - against her will by a bunch of thugs!" Perry calmed down before he continued. "Look, I know you mean well, Lieutenant. And I appreciate all that you've done to help track Della down. But I need to do something, too, and right now that means I'll use Paul and all the men he can muster to find Della!"

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Fatso and Roxy were sitting out on the front porch when Solito, Dice and Della returned from Bullhead City. Solito only stayed at the ranch house long enough to bring Della back and pack up Roxy for their drive to Las Vegas. He gave Dice and Fatso instructions before he left.

"Be sure to give Vinny a call from town tomorrow morning. I'll be staying in Vegas tonight, but I'll be back in LA by tomorrow afternoon... Vinny made it clear – keep this dame sheltered and fed and you'll be paid very well when this thing's over..."

From the front porch Della watched Solito and Roxy drive away to the north and began plotting her escape. Dice still had his car there and she was going to figure out a way to get his key and take off in that car. It might take a day or two, but somehow she was going to get back to Bullhead City. She'd have to closely watch where Dice keeps the car key – and if she could find a way to distract him at the right moment...

Fatso interrupted Della's thoughts. "That's enough fresh air for today. Come on back inside where I can keep an eye on you. Supper will be ready in about an hour. Maybe you'll want a glass of wine or something before that. I'm making lasagna..."

Della had a faint smile on her face. "I think a glass of wine would be nice, thank you." She watched Fatso walk over to the bar and open the cabinet door that exposed several bottles of wine. Suddenly her mind was racing – a bar full of booze and wine might just be the distraction she could use to get to Dice and his car key. If Dice gets drunk and passes out, she could get the car key... After she thought about it more, maybe she could volunteer for laundry duty – especially to see that Dice gets clean clothes. He'd have to empty his pants pockets and that would be a way to get the car key away from him long enough to grab them for herself. She decided to use the rest of the day and overnight to think about a way to put her plan into action.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Dan McGill found the Lucky Horseshoe ranch easy enough. When he found out that it was only operating as a brothel, he cautiously decided to check it out and see if Della Street was being held there. While still sitting in his car outside of the main ranch house, he looked through the file in his briefcase and found the photograph of Della given to him for the search. Before putting the photo back in the file, he studied the photo for a minute wondering if she was just as beautiful in person.

There were only a few other vehicles parked near the main house. Dan made his way inside to a lobby area and was greeted by a woman right away.

"Hiya Sugar. My girls are all busy right now, but if you wanna wait about thirty minutes, I'll make it worth your while..."

Dan did some quick thinking. "I'm not here for just any girl... The one I'm looking for is wanted back in Vegas right away – for the boss..."

The woman looked puzzled. "Which girl? And who's your boss? I don't recall seeing you around here before..."

Dan played a hunch and made up things as he spoke. "Lefty wants the girl that he's hiding here back to the Stardust tonight. She's not a working girl... He's hiding her here for 'The Shark'..."

Another woman walked into the lobby area from a back room. "Who's being hidden for 'The Shark'? Are you talkin' about Vinny?"

The girls looked at each other then looked back to Dan who thought that if they knew Vinny, chances were good that Della Street was being hidden here. "All I know is that this girl was sent here by mistake – and now Lefty needs to get her back to Vegas. And he sent me to bring her back. How many girls are here right now?"

The girls looked at each other until one of them finally answered. "It's a weekday. We only have four of us here today and none of us are being hidden for no 'Shark'."

Dan continued to play them. "I need to look around to make sure she's not here. Where are the other girls?"

"They're with clients right now. You can't just barge in here and..."

Dan cut her off and began walking back towards the back rooms of the large house. "I ain't leavin' until I've checked every room for her. Now either help me out here, or you'll be answering to the boss!" The girls walked with him through all of the rooms in the house and there was no sign of Della.

Satisfied that Della was not being hidden at the Lucky Horseshoe, Dan left the ranch after getting directions to a paved highway. He was going to make his way further south towards Sandy Valley – the next dot on his map.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

A steak sandwich at Clay's Grill sounded good to Perry and Paul for a late dinner, but when the waiter brought the food to their table, Perry didn't have as big of an appetite as he thought. Paul, on the other hand, was hungry and the half sandwich that Perry left behind was eaten by Paul without hesitation. Perry got the waiter's attention and ordered another bourbon on-the-rocks. While Paul ate, Perry shared his plans for the phony murder trial.

"I'll know more about this tomorrow, but I think we'll have a courtroom to use in the Hall of Justice building. It's been vacant since a Judge retired last month and they've been remodeling it since then. Burger's trying to hold off the Judge that wants to move in, so he'll update me on that tomorrow. We need to start this so-called trial right away..."

Paul finished the rest of Perry's sandwich. "Well my man at the Pasadena Playhouse is ready to go when you are. He's confident we can pull this off with a crew of actors and students – without letting them know what this is really about. They'll just be following his script."

Perry was sipping his bourbon and smoking a cigarette. "Speaking of a script, I hope that your man can meet with me sometime tomorrow to talk about what I'll need in his so-called script. This is only going to be a jury selection process to convince Vinny Sharpelli that there's something being done for his son. If any of this leaks out, I think we'll be in big trouble. And I hate to think about what could happen to Della..." Perry hung his head down.

Paul was supportive. "We'll find her, Perry. I'll get an update from my men in Las Vegas tomorrow. When they heard that it was Della that's missing, they were on it right away. They'll check every ranch house between here and Vegas if they have to...

After dinner with Paul, Perry went to Della's apartment to look around and try to figure out what she meant by 'feeding her fish'. He was also confused about what she meant by taking forty minutes to get to her place to take care of the fish. Maybe something would catch his attention as he looked around her apartment. It was just so good to hear her voice on the phone but he was getting angry with himself for not knowing what she was hinting at about the fish. She had told him the story about being stung by a bullhead when he brought her along on a fishing weekend to Big Bear Lake several years ago. He wracked his brain trying to think of how a bullhead fish that she really didn't have would be related to her captivity.

After walking around Della's apartment for a while feeling even more lonely and down without her being with him, Perry laid down on her bed. While clinging to her bed pillow, his thoughts drifted back to the fishing trip with Della to Big Bear Lake. He didn't think she would enjoy fishing, but she did. He remembered the big smile on her face as she reeled in her first largemouth bass. She squealed with delight as she landed the fish in the boat and looked at Perry to see his reaction. As he recalled, his reaction was dropping his fishing pole to take her in his arms and kiss her passionately while the bass flopped around on the bottom of the boat. Perry fell asleep hoping that they could get back to Big Bear Lake soon and experience another wonderful weekend like that again.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

The only thing Dan McGill found in the area of Sandy Valley was a gas station attached to a small store. With the sun going down and his hunger growing, he decided to pick up a few things to eat in the store before searching for the ranch house that he came to the area to find.

The directions he'd written on his road map led him right to an unoccupied ranch house. It looked like there hadn't had been anyone staying there for weeks. Once he got inside, he found that the place was sparsely furnished. He thought he'd spend the night on a couch figuring that nobody would be coming to this place in the dark.

As the sun came up in the morning, he studied his road map for his next stop – another secluded ranch house about twenty-two miles north of Bullhead City, Arizona – just over the Nevada/Arizona State line. He wasn't sure what he'd find there, but the mob associate in the Clark County jail that told him about this place said that his Las Vegas associates referred to this place as "The Shack".

**TBC**

Thank you for reading and reviewing!


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

The more that Perry could get out of - and away from his office, the better he felt. When he was in the office, Della's absence made him pine for her even more. When he was deep in thought and would suddenly need help with a phone call or digging out critical information, Della was not there to assist him. When he'd forget to eat and the hunger pangs would overtake him, Della was not there to remind him to eat and share a nice meal with him. She was not there to talk about their day in the office or anything else happening in their lives while they dined together. At the end of their dinner he missed that she would half-heartedly complain about the calorie count in the dessert he would order for her just to see her smile. Without Della in the office he would try to get work done at his desk, but would quickly gravitate to Della's desk where he could sit in her workspace and feel better.

When Hamilton Burger phoned Perry on Tuesday morning, Perry found an opportunity to get out of the office to meet with Burger. While Perry was tossing and turning in Della's bed the night before, he came up with another scheme for his phony murder trial of Antonio Sharpelli. Perry intended to talk with Burger about his new idea – but he didn't want to meet in an office. They arranged to meet at noon for lunch at the Surf View Cafe, a hamburger joint on the Santa Monica pier. Perry chose the place for two reasons – first that the place had outdoor seating for a more private, undisturbed conversation – and second that this hamburger joint was one of Della's favorites on beautiful days like this one.

As he drove in to the parking lot near the pier, Perry saw Burger getting out of his car and honked his horn to get Burger's attention. He shouted to him to wait for him to walk to the hamburger joint together. Perry found a parking spot nearby and the two men walked to the cafe talking about the status of Sharpelli's case.

"Did you get the preliminary hearing canceled, Hamilton? And what's the status of that vacant courtroom?" Perry didn't want to have to appear in court just to waive the rights to a hearing.

"The courtroom is ready for you to use whenever you're ready – just let me know when you'll be using it and I'll meet you there ahead of time to make sure it's set up. As far as the preliminary hearing goes – I got it canceled. Now Judge Reynolds will find a date to start a _real_ trial within the next two weeks. I hope your scheme works, Perry. I've decided to prosecute the real trial myself so that your antics trying to pull off a fake trial won't be an issue with any other prosecutor."

"I really appreciate all of this, Hamilton. And what I'm going to talk to you about today will only help your real trial – and probably help the Feds to put some of these thugs away."

They got their meals and found a table outside to sit down and eat. Burger wanted Perry to tell him about his plan right away.

"So what's your new plan, Perry?"

Perry finished swallowing a big bite of his burger. "Vinny Sharpelli will be calling my office sometime this afternoon. He'll want to know if the preliminary hearing has been canceled and when the trial will begin. I'm going to explain my plan for an immediate jury trial – and ask him if he can help me _taint_ the jury pool..."

Burger was sipping his soda and almost choked when he tried to speak. "_Taint_ the jury pool? What do you mean by that? If you've got actors playing the part of potential jurors, how can you make this any more tainted?"

"It's more of an intel thing for the LAPD and FBI, Hamilton. I'll get a list of names from Sharpelli and tell him that I'll be picking most of his people for a jury that will acquit his son. The men he provides as jurors are local associates of his and it can only benefit the Feds or the LAPD to know who they are so they can start checking them out. Every one of them is probably dirty in one way or another..."

Burger slowly chewed his hamburger. "That will be interesting... What if he doesn't bite on that notion?"

"He will... I'll convince him that putting some of his people on a jury will guarantee a '_not guilty_' verdict and his son will go free... He'll bite on it..."

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

After breakfast at the ranch house Dice told Fatso that he was going to take a shower and then head to town to give Vinny a call as Solito had instructed him to do. While Fatso began clearing the breakfast dishes, Della found an opportunity to put another escape plan into action while Dice was in the bunk room.

Della got Fatso's attention in the kitchen. "Your breakfast was delicious. I think that I'll go to my room and wash some of my clothes in my bathroom. Will it be okay to hang my clothes outside on the wash line to dry?"

Fatso was at the kitchen sink scrubbing a frying pan. "That's fine. Just check with me when you're ready to go outside..."

Della walked into her room and gathered her purse. She looked out of her bedroom door and saw that Fatso was turned away from her at the kitchen sink. She walked out of her room and quietly closed the door behind her. Fatso continued cleaning dishes at the kitchen sink and Della quietly crept across the living room floor to the front door. When she got out of the front door, she made her way to Dice's car and got in the back seat – carefully closing the door the best that she could without making a lot of noise. She hunkered down in the car - breathing a sigh of relief - and waited for Dice to drive to town where she would finally make her escape.

Dice came out of the bunk room after he got dressed and spoke to Fatso. "Do you need anything from town? As soon as I talk to Vinny, I'll come back here right away. I've been thinking of another card game to play with our guest. I just might win back some of my dough..."

"I need more vegetables and meat to make more stew. This time I'll make enough for a couple of meals for us since we're not expecting any more visitors."

Dice walked over to Fatso. "Well give me your list and some money. I'm broke, remember?"

Fatso wiped his hands dry and opened his wallet to give Dice some grocery money. He handed him ten dollars. "This should more than cover everything. And bring back the change!"

Dice took the money and headed for the door. "Where's the dame? I thought she'd be out here reading her magazines."

"She's in her room washing out her clothes. She'll have plenty of time for reading her magazines while her clothing dries on the wash line outside..."

Dice left the house and walked to his car. When he saw that the back car door wasn't closed tight, he put his hand on the side of the door to push it closed all the way. He stopped right away when he saw Della ducked down in the back seat.

"What is this, lady?" He opened the back car door. "Come on out of there!"

Della climbed out of the back seat and began pleading with him. "Please... Just take me back to town... Please! I'll pay you..." She handed him her purse. "Take my money – all of it. I'll get you more from my bank in LA... Please!"

Dice just shook his head. "I told you before, lady... I can't do that. If my boss ever found out that you got away from me, I'd be a dead man... Let's go back inside."

Fatso was standing at the front door watching Dice bring Della out of the car and back into the house. He shook his head as they walked by him. "What's the matter, lady? You don't like my cooking?"

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

According to Dan McGill's directions to 'The Shack', he would get off of the paved road right after seeing a highway sign that would tell him that Bullhead City is fifteen miles away. Looking south ahead on the road he saw a trail of dust behind a car approaching the paved road from his right. He slowed down as he passed the highway sign that he was looking for. The car coming to the paved road turned onto the road about a quarter of a mile ahead of him and went south towards Bullhead City. Dan slowed down even more and made the turn onto the dirt road to drive west. He stopped and waited for the car that came off the dirt road ahead of him to drive further away. When he could no longer see the southbound car, he looked at the directions in his notebook and headed towards the ranch house where he was hoping to find Della Street.

At the top of a small hill several miles away from the paved highway on the dirt road, Dan stopped his car when he saw the top of a windmill off in the distance to the south. He took out his binoculars to look for the ranch house. Dan figured that he was less than a half of a mile from the windmill and after looking a little to the right of it, he saw a large horse barn. Looking further to the left of the windmill, he saw a house.

"That's gotta be it!" Dan said quietly to himself. Now he was wondering how he could move closer to the house to look around and not be seen by anyone that might be in the house. Looking around from his position on the hill, he spotted a large grove of yucca trees along a nearby trail a little further down the road that he was on. He got back in the car and decided that he'd try to hide his car behind the yucca and approach the ranch house on foot. In the back of his mind, he was still wondering about the car and driver that came from this direction towards the paved highway. Chances are that the car and driver would be returning so he hoped that his car would be concealed enough behind the yucca.

Dan got out of the car and checked his gun and extra ammunition making sure that his holster was snapped closed for walking through the desert terrain. After grabbing the binoculars from the car he set off on foot for the house. His chosen route would take him by the horse barn for a more covert approach to get a look inside the house. He used the desert landscape of mesquite, cactus and yucca trees to keep himself hidden on the quarter mile walk towards the horse barn.

When Dan got to the side of the horse barn he saw movement in the house through a window along the north side of the house. Using the binoculars he could only see the large shape of a person moving towards the front of the house. Moments later he saw a heavy-set man hauling a trash can walking towards the horse barn. Dan ducked down behind an empty water trough and continued to watch the man as he dumped the contents of the trash can into a trash incinerator. When the man walked back towards the front of the house, Dan made his move across the open yard to a corner of the house near the back side. He crouched low and walked along the wall of the house to kneel beneath an open window. He was hoping to hear any conversations inside the house, but all he could hear was the faint sound of music from a radio.

Dan got around to the front of the house and found women's clothing hanging on a wash line near the front porch. He still wasn't hearing any conversation inside the house – he only heard the radio. After crawling up onto the porch, Dan was able to take a quick peak in the front window near the front door.

"Bingo!" He thought to himself. He saw Della Street sitting in an easy chair reading a magazine in the living room area.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Vinny Sharpelli made his call to Perry's office around three in the afternoon. Gertie took the call at her desk and transferred the call to Perry who was sitting at Della's desk.

"I have an update for you, Mr. Sharpelli. Do you want to talk about it over the phone or will I need to meet you in person?"

Vinny was direct. "Just tell me what you got right now..."

"Alright... First of all, there will not be a preliminary hearing for your son's case. Instead I've opted to begin a trial by jury right away. The Judge has not been assigned yet, but jury selection will begin Thursday morning at the earliest."

"Good! A speedy trial. It looks like you really want your secretary back quickly..."

"And it looks like you really want your son out of jail, too. Now I'll need something from you, Mr. Sharpelli... I'll need a few of your – uh – _associates_ to be chosen as jurors. When I go to a jury trial, I need what you might call a jury that is _favorable_ towards the defense..."

Vinny was silent for a moment and then he laughed. "I knew you were a clever attorney Mr. Mason. And with a pleasantly unscrupulous reputation! When this trial is over and you're reunited with your secretary, I hope that you'll consider a job offer from me. In my business, I could really use a shyster like you... I'll call you tomorrow morning with some names... I hope by then you'll know where this trial will be taking place..."

When Perry was finished with the call, Paul walked in to the office with a grim look on his face.

"I was hoping for better news out of Vegas, Perry, but my men haven't come up with anything yet. The mob's strength is so vast in that area, there must be hundreds of hideouts! But they're working on it..."

Perry was leaning on Della's desk rubbing his hands together. "Do the best you can, Paul. I need to work on that script for picking out jurors. I just got off the phone with Vinny. He took my new action plan hook, line and sinker... I'll need anyone you can spare to run a few checks on some names that Vinny will be calling me with tomorrow..."

"Uh, I must be missing something here, Perry. I can't read your mind like Della does all the time... _What_ names will Vinny be calling you with and _what_ new action plan have you come up with?"

Perry gave Paul the details of his new plan then gave him a new assignment. "Once we start getting some names from Vinny, I want you to help me create a flow chart with those names. I'm hoping that eventually – by process of elimination – we'll narrow down the list of his thugs to find out who's assigned to holding Della captive..."

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Dan McGill made his way back around to the rear of the house. Earlier, he caught a glimpse of Della walking towards the rear of the house and he watched the heavy-set man move between the dining room table and the kitchen area. His plan was to get in a rear window undetected and get Della Street out of that house before the other thug in the car returns.

He made his way along the back of the house and found the back door nailed shut from the outside. The gun turret opening on the door got his attention. When he found the bedroom window also nailed shut from the outside he knew for sure that the secretary was staying in that room. He made his way back to the horse barn to look for tools such as a pry bar to open up the window to that room. Dan didn't find anything to use as a pry bar so he decided to walk back to his car and grab his lug wrench from his trunk.

After his errands in Bullhead City, Dice made his way back to 'The Shack'. Dan spotted the dust trail behind Dice's car passing nearby when he was getting the lug wrench out of his car. He quietly cursed at his situation – he was in the middle of nowhere trying to sneak up on a mob hideout to rescue a woman being held captive – and he was outnumbered without a back up. It was almost three o'clock so Dan would either need to retreat for the day or make his move soon before dark. He decided to come up with a new plan to get in the ranch house and free Della Street right away. The sooner that he could bring Della Street back to Los Angeles, the sooner he would be getting back to Salt Lake City to see his girl Crystal Davis.

Now at the ranch house, Dice brought the meat and vegetables that Fatso requested inside from his car. Della looked up from her magazine and watched Fatso put the food away. She thought about offering to help, but knew that Fatso would turn down her offer. Instead, Della stood up to stretch and glanced out the window looking towards the north. She got really curious when she saw a dark sedan moving slowly towards the ranch house.

Dice spoke to Fatso about his phone call to Vinny. "There's nothing new with Vinny. He says that I should give him a call next week."

Fatso looked a little disappointed. "Next week, huh? I hope our cash doesn't run out before this is all over... I also hope that he's not planning on sending anyone else out this way. If he does, we'll need them to bring their own food..."

Della saw that the dark sedan stopped short of the driveway. She continued to watch as the driver turned the car around - now facing the opposite direction and out of sight behind mesquite bushes. Dice and Fatso were oblivious to the car pulling up in front of the house. Knowing that Dice and Fatso were not expecting any visitors, Della thought that whoever was coming to the house was not invited. She moved away from the window, turned the volume up on the radio, and sat down at the dining table to shuffle the deck of cards – keeping an eye on the front door. Hoping that the visitor in the car was there to help her, she cautiously waited to see what was going to happen. Then she got a bad feeling when Dice walked over to her and made a suggestion.

"Let's go outside and bring your laundry in off of the wash line. I wanna go and take a nap before dinner so let's get this done now..."

Della slowly stood up. "Okay... But I hope that my clothes are dry..."

Dice was already at the front door. "They've been hanging in the sun for hours... It's all dry..." He held the front screen door open for her.

Della walked directly out to the wash line while Dice waited on the porch. As he looked around the front of the house, the glare from the sunlight reflecting off the back of the sedan in front of the house got his attention. Dice took a step off of the porch for a closer look and noticed a man standing near the car behind the mesquite. Suddenly on alert to the stranger near the house, Dice took his gun out of his holster and shouted at Della.

"Get back in the house, lady! Now!" Dice kept his eye on the man near the car and called out a warning. "Hey - you by the car! Come on out where I can see you!"

Della walked back onto the porch and watched as Dice walked towards the side of his car parked nearby. Fatso was now at the front door and he pulled Della back inside the house.

"Get in your room... And stay down..." Fatso walked out onto the porch with his gun in his hand. Della reluctantly ran for her room.

Dan McGill ducked back behind his car - disappointed that he'd lost his opportunity to get close to the house without being seen. He called out to the men in front of the house hoping that his bluff would work.

"Give it up! This is the FBI and you're surrounded. Come out where we can see you and you won't be hurt!"

Fatso crouched down next to Dice behind Dice's car and they discussed a plan. Neither of them believed that there was more than one FBI man out there confronting them. Dice wanted Fatso to distract the man at the car so he could get in a better position to clearly see where the FBI man was hiding.

Fatso tucked his gun into his waistband beneath the apron he was still wearing and he stood up to talk. "I don't want any trouble here." Fatso began walking towards the man at the car with his hands held out to his side.

Dan maneuvered his way to the back of his car and momentarily lost sight of the men. Dice made his way over to the side of a large boulder in the yard where he could clearly see Dan ducked down behind his car facing towards the house.

Fatso continued walking towards Dan's car. "There must be some mistake here. You've got no business here..."

Dan knew he was in trouble right away when he completely lost sight of one of the men and the other one kept walking towards him. "Just hold it right there. I'm only here to take the girl with me. Give her up and we won't have any trouble."

Dice made his move and started shooting at Dan. When Dan caught a glimpse of Dice shooting at him, he laid flat on his belly and returned fire. Fatso crouched down and got to the front of Dan's car but was hit in the back by one of Dice's stray shots. Fatso went down right away, but began crawling back towards the house.

Della heard the gunshots and carefully made her way towards the front door. She took a peak out of the front window and watched as Fatso scrambled back towards the house – obviously injured. She watched as the gun battle between Dice and Dan continued.

Dan emptied his gun firing at Dice and tried a tactical reload from behind his car. While Dan was reloading, Dice found the opportunity take two more shots at the FBI man before Dan could finish reloading. Dan was hit with both shots, but he managed to return fire right away and hit Dice in the shoulder.

Dice was out of ammunition and retreated to his car. He got to the driver's door of his car and saw Fatso struggling nearby. Fatso looked up to Dice from the ground.

"Help me get up here. I've been hit!"

Dice stepped over Fatso and opened the car door to get in while holding his wounded arm. "I'm hit too! I'm getting out of here!"

Fatso pulled himself up on the side of the car and barely got himself into the back seat of Dice's car. Dice shouted at Fatso. "Gimme your gun! I'm out of ammo!" Dice got Fatso's gun and slowly started driving towards Dan's car.

Dan saw the car moving towards him so he rolled away from the back of the car and into the mesquite bushes as fast as he could. Dice fired several shots at Dan but hit the car's gas tank instead. Dan's car exploded as Dice sped away from the ranch.

As his car burned near him, Dan got off another couple of shots at Dice's car. Before he collapsed in pain from his gunshot wounds, Dan crawled as far away from his car as he could.

When the shooting stopped, Della hesitated for a moment before walking out onto the porch and saw the dark sedan engulfed in flames with thick black smoke. She could no longer see or hear Dice's car driving away so she walked out in the yard.

Looking towards the burning car, she saw a man laying face down between the car and the mesquite bushes so she rushed over to him right away. With all of her strength, she pulled the man further away from the burning car and rolled him on to his back. He was unresponsive and barely breathing so Della looked at his wounds. He was bleeding badly from his side and his left thigh.

When she started to open his suit coat and untuck his shirt to look at his wounds a little closer, Dan opened his eyes, lifted his hand, and grabbed onto her arm. "Help me get up... I'll be okay if you can just help me get up..."

Before Della could say or do anything, Dan's grip on her arm went limp and his eyes closed.

**TBC**

I apologize for the delay in posting this new chapter. My spare time has been taken up with real life situations lately and I've missed my FF reading and writing time! Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

Gertie walked into Della's office where Perry was busy at Della's desk reading a law book and writing notes. It was nearly six-thirty in the evening, but Gertie was happy to stay later than ordinary to help with office duties normally taken care of by Della.

"Here's your request for the Court Order, Mr. Mason. I'm sorry that it took me so long to type it up."

Perry looked up and smiled at her. "I'm sure you did a wonderful job, Gertie." He looked over the document. "This looks just fine. Thanks for staying so late to finish this for me."

"It's no problem at all, Mr. Mason. I'll never be as good as Della with getting these things done. She's such as whiz at these legal duties..."

Perry sighed. "Yes she is..." He paused for a moment thinking about how much he missed Della. "Hmm... Why don't you close up shop for the night? I'll give you a ride home..."

"Oh, that's not necessary Mr. Mason. Bob will be here any minute to pick me up. He's taking me out for dinner and a movie tonight..."

"That sounds like a fun evening, Gertie. Have a nice time. Oh, and if you want to come in a little later tomorrow, that will be fine, too. I'll be at the Courthouse and out for a few errands until at least noon tomorrow."

"Thank you, Mr. Mason." Gertie walked out to her desk to get ready to leave as Paul Drake walked in.

"Hiya Gertie!" Paul stopped in front of her desk and lit a cigarette. "You're gonna break my heart you know. I heard that Bob will be here any minute now to take you to dinner and a show..."

Gertie looked away from him and blushed. "Oh Mr. Drake! Don't be so silly! _Break your heart_ – ha! You're so funny!" Gertie was still giggling as Paul moved on and walked into Della's office.

Perry looked up to Paul when he walked in. "Anything new?"

Paul found a chair and sat down. "Unfortunately, no..." Paul changed the subject. "Why is Gertie here so late?"

"I needed her to type up a request for a Court Order. She's not really up to speed on these things, but she really came through for me..."

"Court Order for what? I thought that you weren't going to do anything – uh – _official_ for Sharpelli's case?"

"This is only a Court Order to allow me to bring Antonio Sharpelli in to the Courtroom under the guise of a jury selection process. This order will allow me to _consult_ with Sharpelli outside of the jail walls. He'll _think_ that we're picking a jury, but for my purposes, I'll just be showing him what to expect during a court trial. And you're going to help me with that..."

Paul took a long drag on his cigarette and slowly exhaled. "I'm not sure I'm gonna like this... Exactly how am I going to help you meet with Sharpelli outside of the jail?"

Perry lit a cigarette of his own and sat back in Della's chair. "Do you still have a contact working in the jail directly with the inmates?"

"Of course I do..."

"Good. Tomorrow morning I'm going to meet with Antonio in the jail conference room. I'll need your man standing outside of that conference room – and have him bring along the biggest gossip-monger of all the jailers. That jailer is going to overhear my conversation with Antonio – a conversation so absurd and unbelievable - that he'll talk about my confidential information amongst the other jailers. And later, when I show the Judge that my private conversations with an inmate have been discussed with officials that are not part of the case, the Judge will sign my Court Order. I'll request that only your jail contact be Antonio's escort outside of the jail for all future meetings. That's how I'll be able to confer with Antonio outside of the jail and in the confines of a courtroom..."

Paul just shook his head. "I don't know how you come up with these ideas, but if I'm ever in trouble..."

Perry cut him off. "Let's just hope that you're never in trouble. Now, as Della would say – I'm starving... Let's go eat!"

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

It wasn't very long before Dan McGill opened his eyes again and squinted up at Della. She was kneeling by his side checking for a pulse on his wrist when he came to.

Dan's voice was weak and scratchy. "Della Street, I presume?" He tried to sit up but immediately fell back in pain.

Della was a little surprised that he was trying to get up. "Whoa – take it easy... Yes I _am_ Della Street and you've been shot. Try to lay still until I can figure out how to help you."

Dan grunted out a reply. "I'm pleased to finally meet you, Della Street. I'm Agent Dan McGill – FBI." Dan was grimacing with pain. "If you can just help me sit up..." Dan reached out to her.

Della got up off of her knees and squatted down next to him. "Are you sure that you want to try this? Your leg and your side is bleeding. Why don't you let me get a wet towel or something to see where your wounds are exactly and then we'll try to move you into the house?"

Dan was persistent. "I'll be fine... Really... If I can sit up first, I'll try and stand up to walk into the house... I've gotta call my office right away and tell them that I found you..."

Della held out her hands and grabbed onto his arms - afraid to tell him at this point that there wasn't a phone in the house. In one smooth move, Dan got up into a sitting position – his face still twisted with pain.

Dan groaned a bit. "Okay... Whew... That went fine... Give me a second here and I'll try to stand up..." A moment later he nodded to Della. "Okay... Let's do this!"

With Della's help, Dan got up on his feet but immediately leaned on Della to catch his balance.

"Okay... So far, so good... I'm just a little dizzy – let me catch my breath here for a second... I should ask if you're okay. I hope you weren't hurt or anything..."

Della kept an arm around his waist – careful to avoid the area of his injury - and placed one of his arms on her shoulder. "I'm fine. I'm just worried about you..." She looked around the area while they waited to move on. "It looks like Dice and Fatso are long gone – for now. I know for sure that Fatso was wounded so I'll bet they're going to a hospital..."

"I think that I shot one in the shoulder, so maybe they're both hurt. I'm guessing that 'Fatso' and 'Dice' were your hosts... These gangsters rarely show up in emergency rooms. They always find some quack doctor to fix them up so the cops don't get involved." Dan glanced over at his smoldering car. "That's not good – there's nothing left of my car... Damn! If you're ready, let's try to take a walk into the house..."

Della looked up at him and gripped him tighter. "I'm ready. Just take your time... Take it slow..."

They slowly limped up to the porch steps where Dan asked to stop and take a break. After a minute, he took in a deep breath and they climbed the porch steps to get in the front door. Della escorted him over to a couch where Dan laid down with a loud groan. Della quickly moved across to the other couch and brought over some pillows to make Dan more comfortable.

While Della placed the pillows under Dan's head, he spotted the bar along the living room wall. Still groaning in pain, Dan asked about the bar. "Is there anything in that bar that can ease the pain of gunshot wounds?"

Della looked a little concerned. "Are you sure that's a good idea? You're still bleeding. Let me take a look at your wounds first..." With Della's help, Dan took off his suit coat and untucked his shirt. As he unbuttoned his shirt, the wound on the lower right side of his rib cage was exposed.

Dan groaned again. "That doesn't look so bad. I think he just nicked me..."

"Let me get a wet, soapy towel so I can clean that up a little. How's your leg?" Della quickly walked over to the kitchen area to get a towel.

"I'm afraid to look at my leg. My toes are numb... I really think a shot of whiskey - or something just as strong will help..."

Della returned with the soapy towel. "Let me clean this a little first. The bar is fully stocked so when I finish cleaning this up, just name your poison."

Dan shifted a little on the couch and cringed as Della dabbed the towel on his side. "Whiskey would be nice, but at this point, I'll take anything strong... Oooh, that hurts..."

Della was apologetic. "I'm sorry... Maybe you should take a swig right now." She walked over to the bar and brought him a bottle of whiskey. "Here... Take a big gulp... I'll look around for some antiseptic and bandages until that whiskey takes effect. Do you think that you can take your trousers off? We better take a look at that leg wound."

While Della searched for medical supplies, Dan drank more whiskey and pressed the towel onto his side. He called over to Della. "I think the bleeding has stopped. My rescue plan didn't work out like I was hoping it would. I did a recon of this place before I made my move. They really had you locked in..."

Della returned to his side. "Yes they did. The windows were nailed shut from the outside..." She paused and thought that she'd better tell him that there wasn't a phone in the house. "We'll have to take care of your wounds the best that we can right here. This house doesn't have a phone..." She showed him the medical supplies that she found. "Here - I found some antibiotic ointment and gauze. Let me clean that wound on your side and put some ointment on it..."

"No phone? I thought that I saw a phone line coming in to the house from the pole out front..." He watched as Della cleaned the wound on his side. "Oooh. That stings..." He took another swallow of whiskey. "Back in the War, we carried wound care packets with us to apply directly to our wounds out on the battlefield. Those packets contained something like sulfanilamide – you know – sulfa drugs - just sprinkled it right over the wounds. It worked wonders for some of the fellas..."

Della continued to clean his wound. "I'm sorry, but I only know basic first aid... I've never heard of those medicines."

"You're doing just fine... I don't suppose you know if there are any neighbors nearby with a phone?" Dan continued to sip on the whiskey.

"The men that held me here always had to go to a nearby town to call their boss – Vinny Sharpelli. The other day, they brought me to town so that I could talk to Perry Mason and let him know that I was alive and well... I saw a sign that said something about Bullhead City – that must be where they always call from..." She applied ointment to the wound. "As you probably already know, Perry Mason is my boss. He's being forced to defend Vinny's son on murder charges."

Dan exhaled slowly. "We've been looking for you since we found out about your disappearance. My partner and I followed a paper trail to Los Angeles on an unrelated case when word came out that Vinny was holding you captive... I've gotta find a way to get to a phone..."

Della placed a large piece of gauze over Dan's wound and took his hand. "Here – hold this bandage. I'll need to find something to keep that bandage in place. There's gotta be some adhesive tape around here somewhere..." She went into the bunk room to check in the bathroom for more medical supplies while she continued talking to him. "During my phone call, I tried to give Mr. Mason some clues about where I was. I'm glad that he understood my hints to send the FBI to look for me here..."

Dan shifted on the couch to try and move his left leg. He tried to move his foot to see if that would relieve the numb feeling in his toes. The pain in his left thigh was excruciating. He swallowed more whiskey and told Della the bad news. "I've never talked with Perry Mason – I found this place from information I gathered from mob associates back in Vegas..."

Della returned with a small roll of tape. "Ohhh. I see..." She shrugged off Dan's information and tried to sound upbeat with the tone of her voice. "I found some tape but there's not a lot so I'll have to use it sparingly. We'll have to change your bandage often..." She taped the bandage on his side. "There... Now let's take a look at your leg."

The effects of the whiskey were starting to make Dan a little tipsy. As Della tried to assist him to take off his trousers, he suddenly felt a little shy. "Uhhh, I'm not used to having a woman that I've only known for such a short time, help me to take off my pants..." Dan pulled off his belt and was extra careful when removing his gun and holster from the belt.

Della could only smile at him. "I'll only peek at your wound..." She tried her best to hide her look of shock when she uncovered the bloody area from the bullet wound on his thigh. "I think we'll need a lot of antiseptic to clean this up."

Dan tried to sit up a little to look at his leg. "No wonder it hurts like hell... It looks pretty swollen." He drank more whiskey and laid back down on the pillows. "This will take more than soap and water. What else have they got around here to clean that up? Maybe some rubbing alcohol or peroxide? Hell – even gun cleaning solvent might work..."

"Let me take another look around." Della left his side to search for something to clean the wound. She found a small bottle of rubbing alcohol in a closet. "Here – let me try this... Brace yourself – this might sting a little..."

Dan raised his hand to stop her for a moment. "One more sip..." Dan swallowed more whiskey then nodded to Della. "Ready when you are..."

Della had a large piece of gauze in one hand and poured a little alcohol on the wound. Dan grimaced a bit and closed his eyes. Della carefully dabbed at the wound with the gauze. She continued to clean the wound trying to use the alcohol sparingly.

"I might not have enough alcohol to clean this really well..."

Dan disagreed. "Nonsense! There's a well-stocked bar across the room..." While Della cleaned his leg, Dan tried moving his foot. "My foot feels numb. I hope the swelling goes down once you clean it up..." He lifted his head to drink more whiskey. "You know the old saying - 'there's never a cop around when you need him'? Change that – there's never a doctor around when you need him..."

Della grinned. "Well hopefully someone from the FBI will be here soon and we'll get you to a doctor right away..."

Dan frowned. "That's gonna be a problem... I don't think anyone from my office knows that I'm here..."

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

When Dice left the ranch, he made his way west on winding dirt roads to northbound US Highway 95 heading for Las Vegas. Fatso was pleading with him to drive directly to Bullhead City so they could quickly find medical care, but Dice disagreed. "I know of a guy in Vegas that will help us out without the cops knowing. We're less than an hour away..."

Fatso was laying in the back seat of the car still struggling. "I don't think I can wait that long... I'm still bleeding really bad..."

"I'm not doin' so good myself. My shoulder is killin' me... Just hang on." Dice continued to drive like a mad man.

When he got to the outskirts of Las Vegas, Dice stopped the car on the side of the road to look at a road map. He asked Fatso if he knew of a shortcut through Las Vegas from southeast to northwest.

"You know this town better than I do. Isn't there a better route to get to Fremont Street without crossing Rancho Drive?"

When Fatso didn't answer, Dice got out of the car and opened the back door to talk to Fatso.

"Hey – I'm talkin' to you!" Dice poked at Fatso who was laying on his side with his eyes closed.

Fatso was unresponsive so Dice reached for Fatso's wrist to take a pulse. When he couldn't find a pulse, he also noticed that Fatso wasn't breathing so he began pulling him out of the car. As he laid Fatso in a heap next to the car, Dice finally realized that Fatso was dead.

Dice looked down the highway for any cars coming his way. When he couldn't see any, he dragged Fatso's body into the ditch. He quickly went through Fatso's pockets and found his wallet. After removing Fatso's cash and identification, Dice tossed the empty wallet on the ground and left Fatso in the ditch. He shook his head and drove off muttering to himself. "The son-of-a-bitch is still wearing his damn apron..."

He knew one thing for certain - if his friend can fix up his gunshot wound to his shoulder, he was planning to hide out while healing – and get out of town before Vinny Sharpelli finds out that he and Fatso left Della Street behind at 'The Shack'.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Mack DeConcini walked into the dark FBI offices in Las Vegas late in the evening after his drive back from Los Angeles. He put his briefcase down on the desk that he shared with Dan McGill and turned on the desk lamp. While unloading two files from the briefcase, he noticed a stack of phone messages left on the desk – probably by the office secretary. Paging through the messages and reading the date and times of the calls, he figured out right away why Dan hadn't returned any of his calls that he made from Los Angeles. It was apparent that Dan hadn't been back in the office for at least two days. He tossed the messages back on the desk and wondered if Dan had checked in to the office at all recently. Exhausted from the long drive back from Los Angeles, he decided to go home to rest and ask the other Agents about Dan's whereabouts first thing in the morning.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Perry got back to his apartment around 10pm and immediately poured himself a glass of brandy. He took off his shoes right away and walked around his apartment in his stocking feet while he gathered some files together that were scattered all over his apartment. With the brandy in one hand and files in the other, he walked over to his easy chair to sit down.

While sipping his brandy he read over his notes - trying to concentrate on the hints that Della gave him over the phone. He rubbed his forehead - still straining to decipher exactly what Della meant when she spoke of feeding her fish and other hints possibly relating to Las Vegas. Once again his thoughts drifted back to some of the cases they worked on over the years that somehow involved Las Vegas.

He leaned back in his chair smiling, remembering the night that he returned late to the office from a quick trip to Las Vegas and Della was still in the office. She sure was a sight for sore eyes that night. His dedicated secretary – the love of his life - was standing at her desk - one foot posed in front of the other, arms folded across her chest. While he spoke to her about his rough trip to Las Vegas on what started out as the 'Cole vs. Cole' case, Della walked over to the chair that he had plopped down in and began massaging his shoulders. He closed his eyes recalling how good she made him feel that night and how she sympathized with him because this complicated case was not going so well. When she updated him about what she and Paul worked on and who she spoke to that day, he learned that his client's ex-wife was in town and wanted to talk to him. Perry's grin faded away when he sighed as he further recalled that he didn't take Della's advice to go home and rest that night. Instead, he got up from Della's relaxing shoulder rub to push on with the case and he went to interview that woman at the Farnsworth Hotel. Once again, he told her that he was going above and beyond for the _client_.

He sat up straight in his chair to drink the rest of his brandy and shook his head. Perry wondered when he was ever going to learn to listen to Della's intuitive advice and stop pushing himself so hard on every case. Had he really listened to her advice to steer clear of Roxy Marino and what turned out to be a bogus eviction situation, they just might not be in the spot that they were in right now. He hung his head down also wondering if she would ever forgive him for ruining all of their vacation plans that he canceled just to work above and beyond for a client. He still couldn't remember the last time that he told Della that he loved her.

**TBC**

Thank you for staying with the story. I appreciate all of your comments!


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

There was barely any daylight filtering into Della's bedroom as she woke up from her light sleep to the sound of grunting and groaning in the living room. She quickly got out of bed and wrapped herself up in her robe to run out into the living room. The occurrences from the day before were now fresh in her mind as she looked around the room for Dan.

"Agent McGill?" He was not on the pull-out couch bed where he fell asleep the night before.

The grunting sounds stopped when Dan replied – slightly out of breath. "Yes Ma'am? I'm here..."

Della walked further into the room and found Dan laying on his side on the floor alongside of the couch. "What in the world...? Are you okay?" She knelt down beside him.

"Sorry if I woke you, Ma'am... I just thought I'd try some exercises... It's not going very well as you can see..." Dan rolled onto his back.

"Oh for goodness sake! Those bandages will come right off if you're not careful..." Della's brow was furrowed as she mildly scolded him. "I think you can wait to do any exercising until after you've been treated by a doctor... Let's get you back up on the couch." Della held her hands out to him to help him get up.

Dan took Della's hands and sat up, then groaned from the pain in his leg and side as he got up on his feet. "Oooh. Thanks... I think you're right about holding off on my exercises for a while, Ma'am. I'm really sorry that you have to help me all the time..." He sat on the bed with a strained look on his face.

Della placed a pillow under his injured leg. "I thought we came to an agreement about your care last night... You were going to graciously accept my help at all times and only complain about my cooking... And my name is Della, not Ma'am..." She placed more pillows behind his back while he settled himself leaning against the back of the couch.

"I only remember bits and pieces of last night... I know that I'm out of cigarettes..." Dan showed a sheepish grin. "I also recall that you got me pretty drunk..."

A raised eyebrow was Della's initial response. "As an experienced lawman, Agent McGill, if you carefully examine that empty whiskey bottle on the table, you'll only find _your_ fingerprints all over it..."

"Ha! You've got me there, Ma'am – uh – I mean _Della_... And you should be calling me 'Dan'..."

Della walked around the bed and made her way towards the kitchen. "I better find you something to eat. I can fix up some scrambled eggs and toast." She opened the refrigerator to bring out some eggs. "You're probably a lot hungrier now than you were last night."

"Like I said before, last night was sort of a blur. But you're an angel in disguise... A real Clara Barton without wearing a Red Cross on her dress..." Dan opened his shirt and found that the wound on his side was starting to bleed through the bandage.

After pulling out a frying pan and small mixing bowl from a cupboard, Della looked across the room at Dan. "How is your bandage holding up? We should probably change all of your bandages right after breakfast... I'll wash the stains out of that shirt, too... I think that Fatso and Dice left some clothes here that you can put on while I wash your clothes."

"That's a good idea. But I think that my attempt at doing push-ups might have opened up the wound on my side..."

Della walked over to him right away and saw the bloody bandage. "Oh dear! I think breakfast will have to wait while we take care of that... I'll get a soapy cloth to clean that up. Does it hurt any worse today?"

Dan shook his head. "I'm almost getting used to the pain... I'm really sorry about this... I was supposed to be here to help you and now look at what a mess I've caused..." He adjusted himself on the bed when Della came to his side with a clean towel.

"Just lay back. Let me take care of this..." Della dabbed at the wound with the cloth. "I'll need to get a basin of soapy water to clean this more before I bandage it again. It doesn't look too bad..."

"If it's not too much to ask, do you think you can make us a pot of coffee before we play doctor again?"

Della smiled at him. "Of course I'll make some coffee. That's something that I _can_ do well in a kitchen!"

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Walking into the FBI offices in the downtown Los Angeles Federal Building, Perry and Paul paused outside of Russ Coffman's office door. They heard the end of a loud argument taking place inside Coffman's office.

Coffman's voice was stern but calm. "_Your_ job was to find a woman that's missing from your very own witness protection program! The D.A.'s office needs her here to testify in a murder trial... It's _my_ job to deal with corrupt cops like Jim Cager so I'd appreciate it if you'd pay closer attention to _your_ job rather than interfering with _mine_! Running around after some of these goons with information that you coerced out of Cager isn't helping me in my job at all!"

Perry and Paul looked at each other wondering if they should walk in or wait. When Perry just shrugged his shoulders, they walked into the office. The shouting stopped and Coffman invited them in.

"Good morning Perry... Morning Paul..." He nodded towards his other guest. "Uh, this is Jack Conner – US Marshal's Office. We were just discussing some developments in our fight against organized crime here in LA... Why don't we all move into the conference room for this meeting?"

Perry and Paul greeted and shook hands with Jack Conner then followed Coffman into the conference room. They were just getting seated around the table when Lieutenant Tragg and Sergeant Brice walked in. Tragg was in a rather feisty mood.

"Good morning, gentlemen... I hope we've ordered up some coffee for this meeting... Oh, and nice to see you, Jack. I was wondering when the US Marshal's Office would be brought into this – uh – _snafu_..."

Coffman placed a fresh pot of coffee on the table and began passing around paper cups. "Just for you, Lieutenant... Will anyone from your Gangster Squad be here this morning?"

Tragg filled his coffee cup. "No. Apparently they all had a late enforcement detail overnight and those that aren't still writing up reports are probably home sleeping right now..."

Coffman sat down with the other men and poured a cup of coffee for himself. "Hamilton Burger will not be here today. He's decided to distance himself from this – uh – _operation_. His office has to be certain that they are not involved in anything that will jeopardize the prosecution of Antonio Sharpelli."

Perry thought that all of this small talk was wasting his time. "Look, gentlemen, we're all here to share information about Vincenzo Sharpelli and his associates here in Los Angeles. As I walked in here this morning, I only heard part of the disagreement between Russ and Jack. It sounded like typical Federal inter-agency bickering. We all have jobs to do, but can we try and work together and help each other out?" Perry was speaking with his unrelenting courtroom voice.

When he was sure that he had everyone's attention, Perry continued. "While I try to pacify Sharpelli under the pretense of defending his son against murder charges, my secretary and – uh – _dear friend,_ Della Street, is still being held against her will somewhere. I need your help in the form of resources to find her, and in return for your efforts, I can help you with intel that you can use in combating organized crime. Now early this morning I was given a list of names for several of Sharpelli's associates that are here in town right now. I'll be using some of these thugs for my purposes and to appease Sharpelli so that no further harm comes to Miss Street. When I'm finished with them, they're all yours for whatever purpose you want. But until I'm through with them, I want you to back off on your harassment of them."

Tragg took the opportunity to show his support for Perry's plan. "As much as I don't like backing off on holding these gangsters accountable, for the purposes of finding Della, I have to agree with Perry. And the sooner we combine our efforts to locate her, the sooner we can put a dent in organized crime activities here in LA."

From that point on, the meeting was productive. The FBI and US Marshal's Offices were willing to put more men and equipment on the search for Della. Perry would share any intel gathered by him or Paul. Tragg and his men would not only provide protection to Perry and Gertie in his office, but they would also share information from Police reports that would benefit everyone in tracking mob associates.

When Perry and Paul left the Federal Building, Perry said that he was going to talk with Antonio Sharpelli in the jail. The conversation that he would have with Sharpelli was certain to get him his Court Order to bring Sharpelli into his scheme for the phony Courtroom setting. Paul informed Perry that everything was ready in the jail with his inside man.

Before they went their separate ways, Paul informed Perry of his new plan of action. "I'm heading to Vegas right away. I think I'm more useful there than here now that you have access to everything that the world of law enforcement can offer."

Perry acknowledged Paul's idea. "Just put your trip on my tab..."

Paul declined. "No way... This one's on me, pal. I want Della back here just as much as you do... I'll call you later tonight."

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

While the Clark County Deputy looked over the body found in a ditch along US Highway 95, his Police radio in his patrol car crackled loudly with the voices of other Sheriff's Office personnel.

"That's affirmative Unit 302. Unit 320 is out assisting the State Patrol on US 95 with a 10-92. He's requesting a Sergeant to the scene Code 2."

"Unit 302, 10-4. ETA ten minutes."

"And 302, when you arrive, please advise if you'll need the Crime Lab, Coroner, or both."

"Unit 302 copy that..."

The Nevada Highway Patrolman and Sheriff's Deputy were called to the scene of a dead body found on US 95 just south of Las Vegas. It was reported by a US Postal Service delivery driver on his usual route from Bullhead City to Las Vegas. The Postal worker was asked to wait in his truck on the side of the road while the two lawmen looked over the scene.

The Highway Patrolman, who was first on the scene, wanted to get back to his normal patrol duties. "Well, you know as much as I do right now – he's dead. Can you take over from here so I can get back on patrol?"

The Deputy shook his head. "If you can wait just another few minutes, my Sergeant will be here. He might wanna talk to you before you go..."

"It doesn't look to me like he was hit by a car or anything. When I saw that he was dead, I looked around and found this wallet right over here." The Highway Patrolman pointed out the spot on the ground where he picked up the wallet. "No ID in it. No cash. Coulda been a robbery I suppose..."

The wallet was handed to the Deputy. "Was he laying on his back when you got here or did you have to move the body at all to find out that he was dead?"

"He was face down... And like the Postal worker said, before we even rolled him over onto his back, we knew he was dead... Kinda weird that he's wearing an apron. Must be a cook at some greasy spoon in town..."

The Deputy looked around on the ground. "Looks like a vehicle was stopped here. Look at what's left of the tire tracks."

"Check this out." The Highway Patrolman pointed out what looked like drag marks in the dirt. "Looks like he was pulled into the ditch from the vehicle that left those tire marks. The drag marks end right by his feet. That proves my theory that he wasn't struck by a vehicle. He was dumped here! This one's gonna be yours to investigate, not mine..."

When the Sergeant arrived, they took a closer look at the body and rolled it back face down. The Sergeant looked at the Highway Patrolman. "You can take off. The gunshot wound to his back makes this our problem." He looked at the Deputy. "I'll call the Crime Lab and Coroner. Get a good statement from that Postal worker and you can let him leave, too. I think we'll be here a while..."

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

The only thing that Della could find to give Dan for pain relief aside from booze, was aspirin that she found in a bathroom medicine cabinet. When she finished cleaning the soup bowls from their lunch, she went back into the living room to check on him.

Dan watched her walk into the living room. "Thanks for the great lunch. It really hit the spot!"

Della smiled. "At least it was something that I could prepare that I wouldn't ruin... Opening a can of soup is easy for me..."

"You're doing a wonderful job. Give yourself some credit, Della..."

She changed the subject. "How is your pain? I can get you more water if you want to take another aspirin." Della picked up his water glass and went to fill it from the kitchen faucet.

"My leg hurts more than my side. But I can take the pain... Why don't you sit down and relax for a while? You've been running around waiting on me all day so far..."

With a long exhale, Della sat down in an easy chair near Dan's bed. "I just want to make sure that you're comfortable. When you feel better, I think that I'll try to go and get some help... I'll walk to the highway and flag down a car or something..."

Right away Dan began talking her out of that notion. "That's a crazy idea, Della. The dirt road to this place from the main road winds around hills and dips down in valleys... It's at least twenty miles to the main road. I can't let you do that..."

"What do you suggest we do then? I don't know the area around here. When they took me to town, they covered my head so I couldn't see where we were going."

"I hate to admit it, but I don't know what we can do right now except wait – and hope that the guys in my office in Vegas will come looking for us. They knew that I'd be checking local mob hideouts, but these places aren't exactly advertised outside of their network of thugs..." Dan adjusted himself on the bed by moving his pillows around. "Damn! I should have had a Plan 'B'... I tried to get you out of here without a back-up and now look where we're at!"

Della was consoling. "Don't be so hard on yourself... We'll get out of here... I know that Perry's working on this. And he'll have his Private Investigator Paul Drake working on this, too. Between them and your co-workers on the FBI, we'll be fine... Just fine..."

The uneasy look on Della's face was hard to hide from Dan who was staring at her beautiful face as she looked down at her hands that were fidgeting on her lap. "Hey – let's not think about it right now. How about another game of gin rummy? I'll let you win again this time..."

With her eyebrow raised, Della gave Dan a playful look. "Oh you _let_ me win, did you?" She stood up and picked up the deck of cards on the bar then walked over to his side to help him stand up. "Come on over to the table, Agent McGill. It's your turn to deal..."

Their card game didn't last very long when their conversation became more interesting than gin rummy points. They left the dining table and settled side-by-side in easy chairs with Dan's left leg propped up with pillows on a coffee table. To ease his pain a little more than an aspirin could, Dan requested a bit of brandy. Della walked over to the bar and returned with the brandy and two glasses. After setting the brandy and glasses down, she turned the radio on and tuned in a music station.

"Ahhh. This tastes good... These gangsters really know how to stock quality booze..." Dan sipped a little more of his brandy and paused to listen to the music on the radio. "So tell me... Does Della have a fella?" He chuckled to himself. "That sort of rhymes, doesn't it?"

A little startled by his question, Della sipped her drink before she replied. "Yesss... To both of your questions..." She looked up to the ceiling to search for the right way to fully answer his first question. "My 'fella' is Perry Mason..." She looked back to Dan to watch his reaction.

Dan just grinned. "He's got good taste in women... Uh, I don't mean to sound so fresh - or forward..."

"It's okay. I don't normally talk about Perry and me so openly – especially to someone I hardly know... We sort of keep our personal relationship to ourselves. You know how people will talk when they see that a successful attorney is _messing around_ with his secretary..." Della paused. "I just really miss him right now..." Della took a big sip of her brandy.

"I'm sorry if I upset you, Della."

She waved her hand as she swallowed more brandy. "Oh I'm fine..." She regained her composure and smiled at Dan. "How about you, Dan? Is there a girl somewhere out there worried about you?"

Dan was looking down but smiled. "Yes, there _is_ a girl... At least I hope she's still my girl..." He looked up at Della. "Crystal Davis is her name... She's a nurse... Back in Salt Lake City – that's where I'm _officially_ assigned with the Bureau..." Dan sighed. "I really miss her, too... As a matter of fact, before I made my move to try and get you out of here, I was torn between going all the way into Bullhead City and arranging for help from local cops which would have taken a long time - or just taking care of this on my own so I could get back to Salt Lake City sooner... And now look where that got me..."

Della placed her hand on Dan's arm. "Stop blaming yourself for this situation... You tried hard and it just didn't work out the way you thought it would... When did you speak to her last?"

"Humph... Too long ago. I haven't been so good about calling her even though I promised her that I'd call her often. I spoke to her when I left Las Vegas the other day..." Dan rubbed his forehead. "Her voice is just so... so _sweet_! Jeez! I don't even remember what we talked about – it was just so good to hear her voice... Sometimes I wonder what she sees in me..."

Della's thoughts went back to her last real phone conversation with Perry. "The last time that I spoke to Perry – before I was kidnapped in San Diego – I got angry with him and hung up the phone on him. Sometimes we quarrel about the silliest things..." Della began blinking her eyes quickly when she felt tears forming.

Dan saw her fighting back her tears and he raised his hand to her cheek. "Hey – if this is upsetting you, we can talk about something else..."

A smile came back to Della's face and she brushed away a stray tear with her finger. "I'm sorry..." She took another sip of brandy. "Sometimes relationships can be so difficult can't they? I'd just been so frustrated with him and when he wanted to postpone our overdue weekend getaway again, I was just fed up..." She looked at Dan quizzically. "What is it with men and their need to work work work? All the time – the job comes first – and there's no time left for taking a break to relax and do something besides work work work... Why are men like that?"

"Hmmm. That's a good question – I don't know how to answer that... It sounds like he's a workaholic..."

"I really shouldn't be talking about him like this..." Della looked up to the ceiling again. "He's really a wonderful man. A perfect gentleman... Very handsome... The best criminal defense attorney in the State – if not the Country... Being a lawman, you'd probably not like that about him..."

"He sounds like a great guy... May I ask why you're not married?"

Della chuckled. "Now I don't know how to answer _that_!" She paused to collect her thoughts. "We've discussed marriage quite a few times over the years. I'm sure that we'll get married some day... But right now he's married to his job... And I can't take him away from something that he's so passionate about – and so good at... That wouldn't be fair to him..."

"Are you really happy about that – about having to compete for his affections against his work?"

"I'm okay with our situation for now... As long as I can be a part of his work... We're a good team – I think..." Della turned the conversation back to Dan. "So why isn't Crystal Davis Mrs. Dan McGill?"

Dan just smiled. "I _wish_ she was Mrs. Dan McGill. I've been so close to asking her to marry me, but suddenly my job gets in the way... You know something? In nearly fifteen years with the Bureau, I've had five different _permanent_ assignments and four other _temporary_ assignments including this current _temporary_ assignment to Las Vegas... Now I ask _you_ – what kind of girl would put up with a guy who has to pack up and move across the Country every few years?"

"Have you actually _talked_ to her about it or have you just avoided the subject assuming that her response will be negative?"

Dan thought it over. "I guess I've avoided the subject..."

"Um hmm... Typical male – lack of communication skills on important topics..."

They both laughed and emptied their glasses of brandy. Then they laughed again when Dan lifted the bottle of brandy and silently gestured about refilling their glasses. Della brought her empty glass up and nodded for a refill.

After Dan refilled their glasses, he proposed a toast. "To better communication between men and women..."

Della raised her glass to Dan's. "I'll drink to that!"

After their second glass of brandy, Della and Dan took a short break for Dan to stand up and move around. The brandy eased his pain, but he was concerned about the numbness in his left foot. He wanted to keep moving his leg muscles to avoid the painful muscle cramps that he was experiencing when he sat for too long. While walking around the house to stretch, they began thinking about what to eat for dinner while their conversation continued.

"As you already know, I'm not a very good cook. Perry has better culinary skills than anyone I know. I consider him a gourmet cook. He won't allow me to cook very often. And when he doesn't have time to fix a good meal, we go out for dinner..."

"I do a little cooking myself. When I was growing up, I helped my Mom in the kitchen. When my Dad walked out on our family during the Great Depression, my Mom sometimes worked twelve hours a day at the cannery. That left me to figure out how to feed my little brother and me..."

They were standing in the kitchen – Della with her arms folded across her chest - still wondering what to make for dinner.

"I'll bet you were a good big brother... What sort of things did you make for yourselves?"

"Like you, I could open cans of soup. My Mom could occasionally sneak a few dented cans out of the cannery and I would heat up the contents. Sometimes it was soup, sometimes baked beans. Eventually I got good at mixing stuff in the cans with root vegetables that we grew in our garden. My little brother never complained..."

"He probably fondly remembers your cooking to this day."

Dan frowned. "He probably would, but I lost my little brother in the Korean War..."

"Oh my gosh... I'm so sorry..." Della held her hand over her mouth.

Dan saw her sad reaction to his comment. "Aw, don't worry about it..." He reached over to Della and gripped her shoulder. He changed the subject. "So what can I make you for dinner? What did your captors leave for us to feast on?"

Della opened the refrigerator. "There's fresh meat for stew. Fatso had Dice bring back some meat and vegetables yesterday... This says 'sirloin' on the wrapper."

Dan hobbled over to the refrigerator and leaned on Della while they looked over the meat selection. "Instead of cutting this beef up for stew, let's fry up a steak. I'm too tired to make stew right now..."

"Why don't you sit down and let me try to fry a steak for us? I've watched Perry fix us steaks many times. I think I can fix us steak without messing it up." She opened a cupboard door below the kitchen counter and brought out two potatoes. "I can fix potatoes with the steak..."

"Okay... I think that while you do that, I'll pour us another drink and get off my feet."

Their conversation continued while Della prepared their dinner. She wanted to know more about Dan and his job. "So what made you want to become an FBI Agent?"

Dan thought it over before answering. "I'm not really sure... I was in the Army during the War – a proud member of the 2nd Ranger Battalion. Up until D-Day, I seriously considered a career in the Army, but after the War, I went back to college. It was there that I was recruited to join the FBI... They were looking for military veterans – especially combat veterans... I've never looked back..."

"I've never really known any FBI Agents... I know a few cops on the LAPD... You'd think that by working for a criminal defense attorney that most lawmen would be my enemies, but I don't see them as the enemy... I have a lot of respect for the job that they do..."

"That's all it is... A job... Playing a game – cops versus robbers..." Dan continued. "You must be very valuable to Perry. When a man as high up in the mob as Vinny Sharpelli is – and he kidnaps a man's secretary – well that's just unheard of – unless he wants to bring another powerful man down on his knees... Yup, you're more valuable than you think, Della."

"I've been trying to figure out how I became a target... I'm just a secretary..."

"There you go again – selling yourself short... Did you ever stop to think that maybe you're a big reason that Perry is so successful?"

Della thought it over. "Oh don't be silly, Dan..." She changed the subject. "Dinner's ready to be served. I'll be right there to help you to the table..."

Dan just shook his head. "I'll never understand how you women think..."

Moments later, Della served the steak and potatoes at the dining table. Dan opened a bottle of Chianti to drink with the steak and once again, he proposed a toast. "To a good meal with a very special lady..."

Della blushed and raised her wine glass to Dan's. "And to a very special FBI man..."

**TBC**

I'm glad that you're still reading the story! Thank you for all of your comments!


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

The mob doctor walked in through the back door of his clandestine office in downtown Las Vegas and was greeted by his nurse right away.

"Good morning, Doctor. There's one waiting for you out front already. He came by yesterday, but I told him that you were still out of town."

The doctor hung his hat up and walked over to his desk. "What's his problem?"

"Gunshot wound in his shoulder. He didn't say anything more than that..."

"Does he have cash?" The doctor went right over to his coatrack to put on his lab coat.

"I think so. I told him it was cash only..."

"Thanks. Bring him in to the exam room. I'll probably need your help on this one."

Dice was brought into the examination room and the nurse helped him to take off his bloody shirt. She assisted him onto the examination table where he sat and waited for the doctor.

The nurse brought out a sterile tray of assorted medical instruments and bandages while waiting for the doctor. When he walked in the room, he told Dice that he wanted to see cash before he could help him.

Dice shifted on the examination table and brought out his wallet. "How much, Doc? I only have thirty bucks on me right now." Dice was lying, of course, and had the three hundred extra dollars that he took from Fatso's dead body hidden in his car.

The doctor frowned. "Thirty will be fine. But let me take a look at you first. If this turns out to be a bigger wound, it might cost you more. Lay back so I can take a look at it..."

The doctor started his examination and asked about the wound. "Who shot you?"

Knowing that the doctor wouldn't be reporting this wound to the police, Dice was honest. "I got winged by a G-man."

The doctor was a little surprised. "Oh really? I've been out of town, but I haven't heard of any big shootouts with the Feds lately. When did this happen?"

"Two days ago... I wasn't exactly in town when this happened..."

The doctor finished looking at the wound. "I think you've got a little infection setting in. I'll have to clean this up a little before I dig that bullet out." He turned to the nurse. "Let's irrigate this with some saline first. I'll start with that bulb syringe." The doctor looked back to Dice. "I'll try and numb this area with a bit of novocaine. I can't give you any more for the pain until I'm finished." The doctor went over to the sink to wash his hands so he could begin treatment.

While the doctor was treating Dice's wound, he conversed with his nurse. "What have I missed the past few days? Any other visits from the Feds? The files that they took from this office won't show them very much. They'll never prove that I treat questionable wounds without properly reporting them to authorities."

The nurse assisted with cleaning the wound. "They haven't been back since before you left. I hear that they're busy with a major case over at the old Royal Nevada Casino – you know – the one taken over by the Stardust..."

"Hmm. That's odd. Moe keeps the Stardust squeaky clean..."

"Maybe so, but this raid included the IRS _with_ the FBI... It was quite the operation I hear... Lots of Deputies and Feds all over the place..."

The doctor spoke to Dice. "You wouldn't know anything about that raid would you? Did you have a shootout with the Feds at the old Royal Nevada?"

Dice was trying to hide his pain. "Nope... I had nothin' to do with that raid... Like I told you before, this happened out of town..."

About fifteen minutes later Dice heard the metallic 'plink' sound of what he hoped was the bullet from his shoulder being tossed into a metal bowl next to the examination table. The doctor finished up and stepped away from Dice to walk across the room to the sink.

"I'll irrigate that area again and you'll be good to go... How's the pain?"

Dice was very uncomfortable. "It hurts like a son-of-a-bitch... I don't need you to clean it up anymore. Do you have any pills that I can take for this pain?"

The doctor came back to his side drying his hands with a towel. "Normally, pills will cost you an extra five dollars... But give me the thirty that you have and we'll call it even – but that only includes ten pills." He left the room to find Dice some pain pills.

When the nurse finished bandaging Dice's wound, she helped him put his shirt back on. "If you want me to help with those buttons, let me know. I'll need to fix you up with a sling. That shoulder will hurt for a while..."

"Whatever... My fingers are a little numb. I'll need help with my shirt." Dice was sitting up on the exam table.

When the doctor came back in the room, he handed Dice the pain pills. "Don't take more than one every six or eight hours. I should take another look at your shoulder in a week..."

The nurse fixed the shoulder sling for him and helped him adjust it for a comfortable fit. The doctor looked on as Dice stood up next to the table. "I was hoping to leave town – and soon. Do I really need to come back in a week?"

"Suit yourself... But if it's infected, you'll be sorry... Were you planning to leave town?"

"Yup. I'm headin' back to Chicago... I've had enough of this town..."

"That's what they all say..." The doctor held out his hand. "I'll take the cash now... If you're still here in a week, stop back. A check up will only cost you five bucks..."

Dice paid the doctor and left. When he got in his car he immediately opened the glove box and brought out a pint of whiskey. He took two of his pain pills right away and washed them down with half of the whiskey.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

Paul Drake walked into all of the chaos in the FBI Office in Las Vegas looking for Mack DeConcini. The receptionist directed him to DeConcini's desk where he found him sitting behind a stack of evidence boxes.

"Is this place always this busy?"

DeConcini looked up at Paul. "Hey! You must be Paul Drake... I got your phone message..." He stood up to shake Paul's hand. "Mack DeConcini. Welcome to Las Vegas... We're normally not this busy, but our office had an 'all hands on deck' operation with our cohorts in the IRS division. This is the result of a raid on the old Royal Nevada Casino that's been absorbed into the Stardust... Apparently the old place was the new headquarters of a skimming operation that the IRS got wind of... Find a chair and sit down..."

Paul located a chair and pulled it up to DeConcini's desk. "I hope that you'll have some time to give me an update on Sharpelli and his operation..."

As other Agents and clerical staff walked around in the office carrying boxes and shuffling papers, DeConcini decided to look for a quieter place so they could talk. "Have you had lunch yet? Let's get the hell out of here so we can talk without all of this commotion... I've done my part with this mess, so now it's time to get back to my cases."

They left the Federal Building and found a nearby diner to have lunch. The waitress came to their table right away carrying a pot of coffee.

"Hiya Mack... The special's ham on rye with cole slaw on the side. Soup is vegetable beef..." She turned over the coffee cups already placed on the table. "Coffee today?" She snapped her chewing gum waiting for DeConcini's reply and looked at Paul.

Paul brought out a cigarette and looked up at the waitress. "I'll take some coffee, please... And the special's fine with me..."

DeConcini smiled up at the waitress. "Make that two specials – and keep the coffee coming please..."

"You got it hon..." The waitress poured their coffee and left to go put in their order.

Paul finished lighting his cigarette. "So what have you heard from your partner – what's his name – McGill?"

DeConcini fired up a cigarette of his own. "I haven't heard from him since I was in LA. I hope that he calls today. We've been sidetracked by this IRS case so all of our cases have been put on hold. Now that you're in town, I can start tracking him down. Our receptionist told me that he checked in from a dot on the map west of here the other day." He stopped to try and recall the name of the town. "Pahrump. That's the name of the place... I haven't had a chance to figure out what he's doing there. All that I _do_ know is that he's following up on leads to Miss Street's disappearance."

Paul became very concerned. "He hasn't checked in for a few _days_?"

"That's not all that unusual around here... This place is so disorganized... When I got in from LA the other night I looked through our phone messages and didn't find anything worthwhile in them. So I began looking through the one drawer that we have in the office filing cabinet, and I couldn't find his case files. I think he took them with him. Now that I'm done helping with that IRS caper, I can start going through my case files again."

The waitress arrived with their food. "Are you staying for pie today or are you gonna run out again as usual?"

DeConcini smiled up at her. "I won't run out today – but bring me the check please – just in case..."

While they ate their lunch, DeConcini brought out his notebook and discussed his plans with Paul.

"Almost forgot about my notebook. It says here that Dan was gonna start talking to a few of these goons in the County Jail. Before we follow in his footsteps, we should go back to my office so I can look at our flow chart and notes in my file."

As they walked into the Federal Building after lunch, DeConcini saw a detective that he knew from the Clark County Sheriff's Office walking out.

"Hey Walt! What brings you in to our neck of the woods?"

Walt walked over to DeConcini. "Howdy Mack... We found a stiff one out on US 95 – bullet in his back and no ID. We're waiting to ID him by fingerprints. Your fingerprint expert told me it might take him a day to find out who he is." He looked Paul up and down.

DeConcini thought he'd better let Walt know that it was okay to talk business in front of Paul. "Uh, this is Paul Drake – a private eye from LA. We're working on a missing person case. Actually, it's a syndicate kidnapping case..."

Walt looked like he was ready to leave the building. "Mob activity... It never ends, does it? I'm thinking that our stiff is mob-related. We just might be talking again soon!"

After Walt left, Paul and DeConcini got down to business. Finding Della was their only priority.

**PMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Perry used the entire morning to get his courtroom ready for his phony jury selection to begin right after lunch. In the vacant courtroom, he met with Paul's operative – the stage manager from the Pasadena Playhouse.

"Are you ready for this? Remember – this has to look official." Perry looked around the courtroom.

"You've got my word, Mr. Mason. Just stay as close to the script as you can and this will all work out."

Perry left the courtroom and went to find a payphone to call Gertie in his office.

"Hi Gertie... I won't be back to the office until late this afternoon. Are there any messages?"

"Yes Mr. Mason. There are several messages, but I'll give you the most important ones first. Paul Drake will call you later this evening – and Mr. Sharpelli wants you to call him right away. Do you need that number?"

Perry was glad that Sharpelli had called. "Yes – give me Sharpelli's number please." Perry wrote the number down. "Thanks, Gertie. If you want to close up for the day, that's fine."

"Thanks, Mr. Mason, but I think I'll stick around. There's enough to do around here – especially with Della being away..."

Perry called Vinny Sharpelli right away. His plan was to persuade Sharpelli to come to the courtroom and watch some of the jury selection procedure. He wanted Sharpelli to see for himself that his son was vigorously being defended against murder charges.

By one o'clock that afternoon, everything was going as planned. Paul's jail contact escorted Antonio Sharpelli into the phony courtroom and seated him next to Perry at the defense table. As agreed to earlier, Antonio was shackled and the jailer sat right next to him so there was no chance to attempt an escape. Perry looked around the gallery and spotted Vinny Sharpelli seated in the rear of the courtroom. His goons were nearby.

Antonio was nervous and leaned over towards Perry to ask him a question. "Where's the Judge? Who's gonna prosecute this case? I don't see a jury yet..."

"Shhh." Perry held his hand up towards Antonio. "When you need to know something, I'll tell you. Like I told you yesterday, you just need to watch and see this as a lesson on how a jury is chosen. Remember our conversation? This is the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution – your right to a speedy trial. _Voir dire_ begins. Just sit back and pay attention. That's all that you need to do."

Antonio sat back in his chair and watched as a man walked in from a door behind the Bench. He declared that the Court was being called to order and that everyone should rise. Everyone in the courtroom stood up and a man dressed in a Judge's robe seated himself at the Bench.

"You may proceed with your case, Mr. Prosecutor."

On cue from Perry, the stage manager walked several of his actors into the courtroom and the fake jury selection process began.

**DSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXO**

By afternoon at the ranch house near Bullhead City, Della was busy outside gathering large rocks and firewood logs in the front of the house. Her plan was to arrange the rocks and firewood into a distress signal on the ground. Dan stepped out of the house and offered to assist, but was told by Della to stay on the porch and just watch.

When Della finished the project, she walked back up to the porch brushing off the dust from her dress. She spelled out the word 'HELP' in large letters – each approximately eight feet long by four feet wide.

"How does it look?" She started walking up the porch steps.

Dan hobbled over to the edge of the porch and kept his balance holding onto a post. "You spelled it wrong..."

Della quickly turned around and looked back at her rock and firewood formation. When she saw that it was spelled out just fine, she turned back to Dan raising an eyebrow. "You're a real comedian, Agent McGill!"

Dan held out a hand to guide her up the porch steps. "I just want you to keep up your secretarial skills. A good secretary always double-checks her spelling doesn't she?"

"If we're still here tomorrow, I'll spell out 'SOS'. Can't go wrong with that! Let's get inside, Mister Smarty-pants FBI Agent..."

After Della got cleaned up, they sat down in the easy chairs in the living room to listen to the radio. Dan tuned in the music station that they enjoyed listening to the day before.

"It's too bad that we lose the signal to this radio station after dark. They play some good music." Dan propped his sore leg up on the coffee table again.

Della agreed. "Yes they do. In the office back in LA, I occasionally tune in to KBMS radio. They don't play any of that rock and roll music – just easy listening music like jazz or big band. It's so soothing..." She sighed.

"I should get a radio for my office. The only time I listen to the radio is usually when I'm in my car or relaxing at home... I like some jazz... Do you ever find time to go out dancing?"

Della laid her head back in her chair. "Yes... I love dancing. Perry's a really good dance partner... The night that I first saw him I was at a dance at a USO Canteen near Long Beach during the War... He was so good-looking in his Navy uniform – he was a Lieutenant..."

Dan sat back in his chair. "And you've been with him ever since?"

"Oh gosh no... Long story short – the club suddenly closed down due to an air raid scare and we got separated in all of the chaos. I didn't even know his name... I didn't see him again for several years after that." Della paused. "The next time that I saw him was on a railway station platform in Chicago. He'd tracked me down to offer me a job in his new law office back in LA... I've worked for him ever since..." Della was staring at the ceiling with a big smile on her face.

"A match made in heaven? Happily ever after?"

Della chuckled. "A match made in heaven – yes... Happily ever after? I'd like to think so... We've had our moments like any other couple..." Della paused but decided to give him an example. "We've endured what I considered to be one really rough time in our relationship... A few years ago I had to leave LA to take care of my sick aunt. My time away got extended by nearly a month. He was not happy about that at all! Of course we ended up quarreling about the situation and didn't speak to each other for over a week. What I didn't know at the time was that his ex-girlfriend was back in town from Colorado after calling off her second marriage engagement... Whenever _her_ love life turned upside down, she always turned back to Perry..." Della sat up in her chair and was apologetic. "You probably don't want to hear all of this..."

Dan was sympathetic. "I don't mind listening... Unless it's upsetting you..."

"Oh gosh no, I'm not upset by it – any more..." She continued speaking softly. "We reconciled when I got back to LA and Perry put Laura on a plane to return to Denver. _Laura_ – that's her name... She's still a big corporate attorney... I think she's finally out of his life. She married the successful businessman son of her law firm's senior partner..." Della sat back in her chair. "I still don't know what he saw in her... She's very self-centered – so egotistical..." Della sighed. "Well, that's enough about my up and down love life... Why don't we talk about the love of your life?"

Dan grinned. "Hmmm. There's not much to tell, really... I've only been seriously dating her for a few months... What else can I say?"

Della rolled her eyes. "There you go again with a typical male response. '_I've got a girl and that's all there is'_... Where'd you meet? When did you know that she was the one? Men never talk about their relationships like women do..."

"Hey now... That's not fair... Sometimes men talk about their girlfriends – or wives... It's just that we have other more important things to talk about instead..."

"Oh... So women aren't important to talk about?"

Dan knew that he was burying himself deeper the more that he tried to clarify his earlier statement. "Okay, okay... I feel like a hostile witness on the stand here..." Dan smiled. "I met Crystal at St. Mark's – that's the hospital where she works. A buddy of mine – another FBI Agent – had surgery when he broke his leg. Crystal was his nurse when I was there visiting him. I have to admit, I was smitten with her right away. I made it a point to visit my buddy every day just hoping to see her again... Well my buddy – who's happily married by the way – told her one day that I sort of had a crush on her. I could have punched him for telling her that, but long story short, I asked her out on a date and she accepted my invitation to dinner. I took her to a really nice place – Jack's Steak House..." Dan stopped talking and frowned.

Della noticed the change in his demeanor. "What's wrong? Didn't your first date work out like you thought it would?"

Dan perked up. "Oh, it was great – a really good night... I was just thinking about a phone conversation that I had with her recently. She was being taken out to dinner last week by a doctor that she works with. I was just hoping that he wouldn't be taking her to Jack's, that's all. That's what's so frustrating about being away from my normal assignment. If I'm not there to spend time with her, she's free to do things with other men. That drives me crazy..."

"So did you ever find out where she went for dinner with the doctor?"

"You know something? I _never did_ find out where she went with him." Dan's voice faded. "Humph... I guess I forgot all about it once I heard her sweet voice the next time that we talked. I really miss her..." He adjusted his leg on top of the pillows and continued talking about Crystal – more upbeat this time. "She's a very nice lady. You'd really like her... You know something? She was an Army nurse during the Korean War. She served in an evac hospital near Pusan before she was transferred back to Tokyo. I've always wondered if maybe she had come across my little brother at that evac hospital before he died." Dan sighed. "She had a tragedy of her own during that War. She lost her husband of six months in the Battle of Heartbreak Ridge back in '51... We've talked a lot about Korea..."

"The Korean War was a lot of heartache for both of you. Sometimes talking about about tragedies like that brings you closer together in a relationship."

Dan was looking down at his leg but managed a smile. "Well it's helped a little talking about this with you... You're so easy to talk to!"

"Right! I've practically had to twist your arm to get you to say anything..." Della got up out of the chair and placed her hand on her hip. "Do you need anything right now? An aspirin? Water? Coffee? Maybe a shot of bourbon?"

Dan thought it over. "How about some bourbon – but only if you'll join me?"

Della walked over to the bar. "Okay... But only a small drink for me right now... We still need to change your bandages again... And while we're talking about it, why don't we do that right now?" Della walked across the room to gather the bandaging supplies and brought them over to Dan with the bourbon.

"There's not a lot of this rubbing alcohol left. I'll need to use more of the soapy water to clean you up now." Della held her hands out. "Okay, Agent McGill. Up we go... Let's get you on the bed..."

While Della cleaned his wounds, they discussed what they should make for dinner. Della was worried about their shrinking food supply.

Dan grinned because he was way ahead of her for their dinner plans. "I have dinner almost ready... What do you think I was doing in here while you labored on the distress signal?"

Doubting that Dan could find enough ingredients in the kitchen to fix a nice meal, she raised a brow while she taped a bandage to his side. "Let me guess – you sliced the rest of the bread so we can make peanut butter sandwiches."

"Ha! Peanut butter sandwiches! Have you forgotten that I prepared lavish meals for my little brother and me during a time when we had to scavenge for every morsel of food to keep from starving?" He paused. "We're having beef stroganoff tonight – courtesy of the leftover steak and a few other ingredients. The problem is, we'll be out of meat, mushrooms and sour cream. And we'll barely have any egg noodles left in the pantry."

Della was impressed. "Umm. Beef stroganoff. You've made me hungry just thinking about it." She finished taping the bandage on his thigh and patted him gently on his leg. "Okay Agent McGill... I think these bandages will hold until morning."

Dan sat up on the bed to move over to the easy chair. "I think that you should have been a nurse..."

Della chuckled. "Are you kidding? I hate needles and can't stand the sight of blood..."

**PMXODSOXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXOPMXODSXO**

Perry's jury selection show went very well. After questioning several actors and a few of Vinny Sharpelli's associates, Antonio was taken back to jail when the actor Judge called for court to adjourn until ten o'clock in the morning. They'd only picked two jurors – both were associates of Vinny Sharpelli.

After leaving the courtroom, Vinny was waiting for Perry out in the hallway. Vinny got Perry's attention and motioned for him to meet.

"Things are looking fine, Mr. Mason. But this jury selection process is taking a little longer than I thought. That prosecutor seems to be holding things up. I suggest that you try a little harder to convince that prosecutor to stop being so nit-picky in his selection process. He and that Judge are challenging too many potential jurors for cause. Get around that tomorrow, will you?" Vinny signaled to his nearby body guards and walked away with them.

After leaving the courthouse, Perry intended to stop by his office briefly - hoping that there'd be a message from Paul. When Gertie told him that Paul hadn't called yet, he went into Della's office to unload his briefcase. Gertie followed him in with other office correspondence that needed his attention.

"Some of these things just need your signature, Mr. Mason. But I'm not sure what to do with _this_ pile." She placed the documents on Della's desk.

Perry began looking through the papers. "Thank you Gertie. I'll look through this tonight and I'll leave the items on your desk that you can take care of tomorrow." He looked up and smiled at her. "Now why don't you get out of here for the day? Can I give you a lift – or is Bob still lurking outside of your door waiting to take you home?"

Gertie giggled. "Oh don't be silly, Mr. Mason... Tonight is 'girls night out' - I'm meeting my girlfriends at The Wishing Well for drinks and appetizers... We occasionally need a night away from men, you know!"

After Gertie left, Perry turned the office phones over to the answering service. When he finished looking over the correspondence that Gertie left for him, he went down to Clay's Grille for a drink and a bite to eat. He was home by seven-thirty and sat around waiting for Paul to call with an update.

He poured himself a bourbon and sat down in his easy chair. On the coffee table in front of him, he found the photo album that Della put together for him and started paging through the album again.

There were two whole pages of photos from their cruise that they took to Hawaii. He chuckled out loud looking at the photograph of Della in her hula skirt at a Luau on the Island of Oahu. She took a lot of photos of waterfalls when they toured the islands.

He flipped the page and grinned at the photos they took posing in New York's Times Square when they were there attending a Bar Association conference. The next page was their trip to Washington DC for another Bar Association conference where he was a keynote speaker. While in San Francisco for a Defense Attorney's conference, he remembered how she flirted with a highway worker to get him to take a picture of them in a restricted area on the Golden Gate Bridge.

Perry put the book down and sipped his bourbon. A thought crossed his mind. Most of the photos in that album were times they spent together going places for his job. Very few were photos of any real vacation time. He frowned and finished the rest of his bourbon.

He was so deep in thought that when his phone rang, he was so startled that he nearly fell out of his chair. He was hoping that Paul was on the line with some good news. He answered the phone on the second ring.

"Perry? I hope I didn't wake you..."

It was Lieutenant Tragg.

"Good evening Lieutenant. Have you ever known me to be asleep before midnight? It's not even eight-thirty yet..."

"Well I don't know if this is good news or bad news, Perry... I just thought I'd better let you know that Vinny Sharpelli's bullet riddled body just washed up on shore near Playa Del Rey..."

**TBC**

Thanks for reading. All comments are welcome!


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